“Hey babe, are you almost done down there?” the voice of Scarlett Pearson asked from the iPhone that sat on a bench inside of the male locker room of AnteUp in Santa Barbara; Aaron Helms had been at the wrestling school for a solid three hours before finally heading into the locker rooms to shower and change back into his regular street clothes, and had already missed two calls from his girlfriend before finally answering on her third attempt. It wasn’t that he was ignoring the calls, his phone was just in his bag and it was only as he was walking back out of the shower and heard Scarlett’s specific ring tone coming from inside of his locker that he realized he’d even missed her calls. “I don’t mind if you are, I just need you to hit the store on the way back when you do set off, because we’re running low on diapers and I don’t want to have to wake her to head to the store myself if you can grab some on your way home,” she told him as he toweled off his hair, the phone sitting on the bench on speakerphone so he could get ready while they spoke. Scarlett was normally one for hitting up AnteUp whenever she could, but with Elysia suffering from a slight cold, she had told Aaron that his workout was definitely more important than hers, given he was the one who still had a career in SCW, while she was just trying to re-find her pre-childbirth body and get back into shape again. He thought she was completely nuts and looked great already, but if Scarlett wanted to work out, he wasn’t going to stop her. He did appreciate the gesture though, because after several weeks of not attending AnteUp on principle, he realized how badly he needed to work out in a proper wrestling school. Gold’s just didn’t cater for a lot of what he wanted to work on and that would become a problem if he left it much longer... was his problem with his father really worth making his ring-work suffer through sheer stubbornness? He didn’t think so. “So can you stop off on your way home or should I get Elysia dressed?” Scarlett asked, and Aaron tossed his towel down on the bench next to his phone before grabbing his jeans from his locker.
“Nah, it’s cool,” he said, slipping his right leg into his pants before doing the same with the left. “I’ll stop off and get us something for dinner too, if you want? I know you said we can just warm up those frozen toasted ravioli and make some marinara sauce to dip them in, but after the workout I just put in, I need something a little more substantial and I don’t want you thinking you’ve got to cook all the damn time,” he said as he hitched his pants up and fastened the buttons on the fly. “We need anything else, or just diapers?”
“Just diapers,” Scarlett confirmed from the other end of the call. “Though if you want to get some food, then I could probably make a list of things we need and then make us something when you get home?”
“Nah, that’s not what I meant babe,” Aaron replied, shaking his head even though he knew she couldn’t actually see him. It was a voice call, not facetime. “I’m gonna call to China Palace or maybe the Olive Garden, get us something nice. Gonna pick up a bottle of wine too, if Andre is working the counter at Jimmy’s anyway... I hate that I’m so close to being old enough to buy alcohol but not quite old enough; having to rely on one particular clerk working sucks,” he said, frowning, but he heard Scarlett chuckling down the line. “Hey, it’s not funny,” Aaron told her; he sometimes hated the fact that she was a year older than he was... she wouldn’t let him forget it until he turned twenty-one in a couple weeks’ time...
“Your birthday will be here in no time baby,” she told him softly, hearing the annoyance in his voice. It really was a sore subject for him. “But Olive Garden and a bottle of wine sounds lovely... Elysia is already out, so maybe we can even... you know...” she hinted and the frown soon disappeared from Aaron’s face.
“I like the sound of that,” he told her, smirking. “Alright babe, I’m gonna finish getting changed and then get out of here. I’ll see you in about ninety minutes I guess... as long as Olive Garden isn’t too busy. You want to phone that in while I drive, save us some time?”
“Okay,” Scarlett said happily. “You want me to order your usual?” she asked, and Aaron nodded again, before remembering he wasn’t on facetime again.
“Yeah, please...” Aaron told her before slipping his t-shirt on. “Order whatever you want anyway... if you wanna grab some appetizers then I’m good with whatever you order; I could eat a scabby horse right now, so literally order anything you like... love you babe,” he told her and once she’d said it back, he bent down and hit the red button to end the call so he could finish up getting changed. Closing his locker, he reset the combination wheel and turned to grab his bag and phone before heading back into the main; the last class of the day was just filing into the place as he stepped out of the locker room and Matty was back in the ring waiting for them. Aaron remembered working his way through the different tiers of class well, even now that he was into the third year of his career in the business... he may not be all that fond of his father right now, but the education he got at AnteUp was second to none and he wouldn’t change his experience there for the world. Aaron was planning on literally walking straight to his car, but looking up at Matty and intending to simply wave a goodbye to him, he noticed that Matty’s gaze was directed elsewhere and when Aaron followed his line of sight he realized that Matty was looking at the chick that had interrupted their conversation hours earlier, right after he’d arrived at the academy. The Bella chick that was supposedly getting kicked out.
She was stood working the heavy bag and right off the bat, Aaron could tell she was doing it all wrong; she had no rhythm, she was literally just throwing herself at the thing instead of planning her punches and kicks. Turning back to Matty, he quirked his brow at the Bostonian once his own gaze finally full upon the twenty-year-old and Matty simple sighed, shrugging. Aaron smirked back at him and started to turn towards the door before suddenly deciding against it. He wasn’t sure what drew him over to the chick that had interrupted his and Matty’s conversation earlier, maybe it was just a general irritation at the way she was working the bag, but he found himself walking over towards her and waited for a break in her flurry of punches before interrupting. “You realize you’re either going to bust your knuckles or break your wrist if you keep throwing punches like that, right?” he asked, and the girl span around on the spot to glare at him before her face softened ever so slightly when she recognized who it was.
Maybe she didn’t know who Aaron was, but she at least remembered that he was the guy that was speaking to Matty in the office earlier, even if she didn’t acknowledge it. “Didn’t know I asked for anyone’s opinion,” the brunette said, half-scowling at Aaron before turning back to the heavy bag and throwing another triplet of punches. “Especially from someone who looks like he knows fuck all about punching... haven’t even seen you around here before, so why should I bother to listen to some newbie?” she asked, looking over her shoulder at Aaron before turning her attention back to the bag.
Aaron was impressed; so much arrogance from someone who was so close to being kicked out of the place... that was almost admirable. “Hey, you don’t want my advice, fine,” Aaron said, shrugging before throwing his bag back over his shoulder, ready to leave her to it. “Not like I get paid to give out advice anyway; the old man doesn’t pay me even when I do help out around the place...”
“The old man?” Bella asked, dropping her fists again and turning to look at him. Aaron had no idea how long she’d been working the bag, he hadn’t noticed her during his own workout but that wasn’t all that surprising given he usually ended up ignorant of everything going on around him. Evidently he was right that she didn’t know who he was though, if she was asking that question. “Who, Sir Matty?” she asked, and Aaron smirked; evidently Peyton’s nickname for the head trainer had stuck, even to those who evidently had issues with him.
“You have no idea who I am, do you?” Aaron asked, laughing. The look on the chick’s face could have melted steel beams... throw in your own favorite 9/11 conspiracy of choice, there.
“Should I?” she asked, looking him up and down before sneering. “You look no different to most of the guys in this place, big dreams and too much enjoyment looking at yourself in the mirror when you work out...”
Aaron laughed at the comment; the first person he thought of at that remark was J-Dilly... and that wasn’t fair either, because Dilly was currently making a real name for himself in Emerge, but it still made him think of Dilly’s attitude in those early days of his training at AnteUp and something of that confidence still lived on strong. “My dad owns this place darling, figure it’s best to just throw that out there before you lay the insults on any stronger and then come to regret them...” he said, and a moment of worry flashed across her face before her features re-set in the same unimpressed look she gave him before he announced who he was. He spotted the signs though, she was panicking now, even if she didn’t want to show it. “Like I said though, if you’re not looking for pointers then I’ll leave you to flail at that thing and if you hurt yourself so be it... it's no big deal to me, you know?”
Turning on his heels, Aaron made to start walking away, but the brunette fired a question at him to stop him from leaving. “So which one is it then?” she asked and he turned to look at her again.
“Which one?” he asked, trying to figure out what she meant, and she rolled her eyes at him as if he was being slow.
“Yeah, which one of the owners is your old man?” she asked, as if it was the most obvious question in the world. “Tommy or Dave? I mean, I didn’t realize either were old enough to have a kid your age, but maybe looks can be deceiving and one of them is older than I figured...”
Aaron’s eyes rolled theatrically before he turned back to look at the girl. “Dave,” he said casually. “And I never said he was my biological father, did I?”
“Oh, so you’re a pity case?” Bella asked, folding her arms across her chest as she gave Aaron an exaggerated sympathetic look, mocking him with her fake pity. “Aww dude, I’m so sorry… what was it, social services took you away from mommy and daddy? Drugs maybe? No, wait, this is LA, so it won’t be meth… corporate fraud? No, I know! They went all Mickey and Mallory, didn’t they?! Natural Born Killers full on snapped and went on a killing spree! LA, hell of a town!” she said, laughing at her own joke. It was in poor taste for sure, but Aaron had a smirk on his face, which seemed to unsettle the brunette, she appeared confused. “What?” she demanded, looking unsure of herself now.
“Was just wondering if I should drop the fact that my folks are dead as a pipe bomb or whether I should just laugh your bravado off, that’s all…” Aaron replied casually, leaving his words hanging in the air and Bella looked at him for a moment to see if he was joking. For a moment, there was a hint of guilt in her face before her defences kicked in and she looked sullen.
“Well fuck, how was I supposed to know that, huh?” she asked sulkily, and Aaron actually laughed; there was nothing funny about the topic of discussion whatsoever, but he found the whole situation amusing nonetheless… was his humour truly becoming that warped? “Wait, are you fucking with me? Your parents aren’t even dead are they?!” Bella asked, suddenly looking annoyed.
“Oh nah, I definitely wasn’t fucking with you; they are dead,” Aaron said with a casual shrug; he missed his parents every day, he would never deny that… but it was also something he had grown accustomed to now, it had been years after all, and it wasn’t soul destroying to just talk about their deaths, like it was some years earlier. “I’m just laughing at how fucking defensive you are right now… a simple sorry would have cleared it all up, you know that right?”
Bella did the best she could to flip him off, but with the tape wrapped around her fist, it wasn’t exactly that impressive a sight. “Yeah, okay; fuck you,” she replied, nonchalantly as folded her arms across her chest again. “So what, I’m meant to suddenly hang on your every word now I find out you’re a fucking orphan or whatever? Look, if you’re looking for a pity fuck, you’re barking up the wrong tree alright dude? You’re not my type...”
Aaron’s brow arched as he looked at the chick. “You really think I’d use being an orphan as a pickup line? Fuck, what kind of guys are trying to pick you up?!” he asked, incredulous. For whatever reason, Bella actually looked slightly ashamed for a moment before she pulled herself together again. “Besides, I’m not interested in trying to get you in bed anyway... I’m with someone and we’ve got a kid, so don’t go there. I legit came over to offer you some advice on your technique and you pretty much made it obvious that you couldn’t give a fuck about my opinion, so I’ll leave you to get back to your workout and head back to my family... have a good one yeah?” he added and turned to walk away again but Bella spoke up much quicker this time, before he could even lift a foot.
“Are you always this much of a condescending dick, or is it just to people you’ve just met?” she asked but when Aaron turned around ready to comment, Bella was smirking at him and he managed a smile himself. “Alright, so that Helms guy’s your dad and you don’t want to fuck me... we’ve got the basics out of the way, but what about trivial stuff like who the fuck you are?” she asked, tilting her head to one side as she spoke, holding a fist out towards him. “I’m Bella.”
“Aaron,” he said, casually tapping his fist on hers before slipping his hand back into his pocket.
“Pleasure,” the brunette said, not that her face showed any modicum of happiness to be speaking to him, but it was an improvement over her attitude a few moments earlier.
“So what’s the deal, huh?” Aaron asked, nodding his head at the heavy bag when she shot him a puzzled expression. “You’re going at that thing like it just tried to steal your wallet… you always throw punches that badly or you just sloppy because you’re in a bad mood?” he asked. It wasn’t exactly a shot in the dark, was it? He knew what her issue likely was, given what Matty had told him during their discussion earlier in the day, but it wouldn’t have done any good to let her know that.
“Who said I was in a bad mood, huh?” Bella asked, her defences going back up again; did she suspect that Matty had told him about her when she walked in on their talk?
Aaron didn’t have to do much lying to cover that one up, even if she did. “Well, the fact you’re trying to beat ten pounds of snot out of that thing was my first clue,” Aaron told her, smirking. “And I kind of extrapolated from there; the attitude, the defensiveness, the pissed off look on your face… doesn’t take the smarts of Sherlock Holmes to deduce that you’re not full of sunshine and rainbows right now…”
“Heh,” she mouthed, a half shrug half laugh, before shaking her head. “It’s him,” she said, gesturing to Matty in the ring, “he called me, well you already know he asked to see me, I walked in on your conversation… they’re accusing me of some shit I didn’t do, and it’s gonna cost me my place here. Which blows because if I’m not here, I’m screwed…”
It wasn’t exactly difficult to understand what she meant be that; this chick wasn’t just another student, shewas there as part of the whole corrections program arranged with the local authorities, so when she said she was screwed if they kicked her out, Aaron believed her. “So what you meant to have to done?” he asked, pretending he didn’t know. Matty had told him all about that too, which was probably a breach of confidentiality or something but Matty never was the smartest of cats.
“Some fuck has told them I’m trying to sell steroids to the other students,” Bella told him, scowling. “Bunch of bullshit dude, that’s what it is… I haven’t tried selling shit to anyone!”
“Okay,” he said, nodding his head. It wasn’t like he knew the full details, so maybe she was telling the truth, but at the same time, surely they had good reason to question her story? “And you’ve told Matty that I assume?”
“Of course I did…” she told him, talking to him like he was an idiot. “Not that the east coast douche bag believed me… said they’d been told otherwise by one of the other students. Bunch of bullshit…”
“Well, I mean, they must have some reason to question you,” Aaron said, wondering if he could get the truth out of the chick. Then again, hadn’t he just told her that his dad owned the place? It wasn’t likely that she’d tell him now, was it?
“I told you, some fuck made up a load of shit and they bought it,” Bella told him, looking angry again. Her fists flexed, the tape across her knuckles straining with the pressure. “I told them my side, straight up admitted what I had done, but because of my record, that fuck doesn’t believe me…” she said, and when Aaron looked quizzically at her, she rolled her eyes but continued to explain. “I’m not here by choice, alright? It’s this or jail, and I’m pretty fucking sure I’d rather be here than there so yeah, I’m pretty keen to get that fuck to believe me. I haven’t been trying to deal steroids… I got some for one guy, and only because he asked me about it!”
“What, someone just randomly asked you if you could get hold of illegal steroids?” Aaron asked, barely able to hide his skepticism. How likely was it that someone just happened to ask her about that, in all honesty?
“I know what you’re thinking, it sounds like bullshit, right?” Bella said, clearly picking up just how skeptical Aaron had been at her explanation. “Don’t think it’s lost on me either dude, trust me… thing is, me being here? These guys who run the place, they’re not exactly professionals at keeping things under their hat, if you get what I mean?” She asked and realisation washed over Aaron. He did know what she meant. “The fact I’m not here by choice stayed secret for approximately three weeks before someone overheard someone else talking about it and it went around like wildfire. Not that I give a fuck, I’d have told people myself if they didn’t give me a talk about keeping it quiet when they first told me I was coming here… but the next thing I knew, people knew every fucking detail about why I was here and then that asshole Kain was asking if I could hook him up…”
“You could have just said no…” Aaron said, and once again Bella looked at him like he was an idiot.
“I’m not being funny dude, but if Helms is your dad, you obviously don’t have to worry about money,” she told him, shaking her head. “Judge me all you want but I have to eat… so I hooked him up. I didn’t see the harm in it; if he wants to bulk up the quick way and risk the side effects, then good luck to him…”
“So what happened?” Aaron asked. There had to be more to the story, if they were ready to accuse her of actually dealing. “I mean, selling one guy one vial isn’t exactly dealing, is it?”
“That’s why it’s bullshit,” Bella said, turning and swinging wildly at the heavy bag again with another punch, shaking her hand afterwards, clearly in some pain. “That asshole Bobby saw us doing the deal, and then he wanted me to get him some… and I knew where it would be heading if I said yes, I’d end up with numerous people all coming to me and sure, the steady income would be nice, but given why I’m here in the first place I didn’t think that’d be too smart,” she said as she turns back to face Aaron again. “So I told him no… only he didn’t like that, did he…”
And then it clicked. “So he went running to Matty and told him you’ve been dealing,” Aaron said, finishing her explanation for her.
“Exactly,” Bella confirmed with a nod before clenching her fists again. “And then I get dragged into the office and accused and I’m pretty fucking sure that Sir Matty doesn’t believe me but hey, what the fuck does he care anyway, huh? If I get kicked out, that’s the end of their problem…”
Aaron found himself feeling sorry for the brunette now; he didn’t even know that much about her, only what Matty had told him a couple of hours earlier and maybe she was just spinning him a story to make him feel sorry for her, he couldn’t discount that… but the look on her face made it hard for the twenty year old to see anything other than honesty in her face, no matter how long her criminal record may be. “Have you actually told Matty that?” he asked and Bella scowled at him when he did. “Don’t judge him too quickly, alright? Matty is a decent guy, even if you may not think so… you just have to prove to him that you’re legit, that you take this place seriously. If you’re telling the truth about not doing what you’ve been accused of and you get stuck into your training then Matty isn’t gonna kick you out…”
“Ha. Sure,” she replied sarcastically before shaking her head. “Look, I don’t wanna sound rude or whatever, but I’m gonna get back to punching that thing all wrong, okay? Good talk or whatever…” she said and held out a fist again.
“Alright,” Aaron nodded, bumping his first against hers. “Just, you know, take it steady alright? Have fun…” he added and Bella nodded at him before going back to the punch bag. To Aaron’s surprise, this time she actually set her feet properly and was throwing punches like they actually taught at AnteUp, instead of going hell for leather in the worst possible way. Smiling to himself, Aaron threw his bag over his shoulder again and turned to continue heading for the exit, only for Matty to call out to him before he could quite get there.
Turning to look towards the ring where Matty had been standing as Aaron made to leave, he saw the Bostonian dropping down from the apron and Aaron sighed before walking in Matty’s direction, the pair meeting half way across the floor. “Sorry kid, I can see ya trying to get outta here,” the bearded head trainer of AnteUp said as he double checked that nobody could overhear their conversation, before turning back to Aaron to whisper to him conspiratorially. “Saw ya talking with Bella that’s all, brah… wanted to check she wasn’t giving ya a hard time, what with ya being Dave’s kid and all, you know?” he said, kind of lamely, and Aaron wished he’d just been more honest about the fact that he clearly wanted to know what the two had been talking about. It wasn’t as of Aaron wouldn’t have told him if he did just ask, after all. “Alright, that was kind of thinly veiled, I admit,” Matty added, once he saw the expression on Aaron’s face. “But after what I told ya earlier, seeing you talk to her… just looking out for you, kid. You’re as good as family, I take an interested, you know?” he explained and Aaron wasn’t sure how he should feel about that. On the one hand, there was something almost adorable about the fact that Matty took it upon himself to look out for him, and he was right about being as good as family, that’s how close he was with Dave and by proxy, him and the rest of the Helms clan… at the same time, Aaron may be young, but he didn’t need babysitting and that was effectively what it felt like, being warned about who he could or couldn’t talk to…
“I appreciate the sentiment bro, but honestly, it’s fine…” Aaron said, trying to brush Matty’s concerns off. “I actually started talking to her, so there’s no need for any concern.”
“Ya did?” Matty asked, looking a little taken back by that. Aaron nodded and Matty raised his brows in surprise. “Alright... why?” he asked.
Aaron shrugged. “Mostly because she was beating ten pounds of crap out of that bag and looking to bust a wrist if she kept throwing punches the way she was,” he told Matty before looking over at Bella at the bag. She was throwing her punches properly now. “Which I guess worked because at least she’s doing it right now...”
“Yeah well, ya should probably keep ya distance kid,” Matty said, looking at Bella himself before turning back to look at Aaron. “Like I said earlier, I’m not sure she’ll be around much longer and between you and me kiddo, I think she’s beyond help.”
“That doesn’t sound like the AnteUp way bro,” Aaron said, and he was smirking as he said it, but there was a grain of truth in his words. It didn’t sound like the AnteUp way, it wasn’t their ethos to give up on any of their students unless they were beyond help. This chick didn’t seem beyond help. Yet. “Joking aside though, she told you her story, right?” Aaron asked, the smirk fading from his face.
“Well, that depends if she told you the same story she did to me,” Matty said with a shrug and looking around them, he stepped a little closer to the doorway so that they weren’t overheard by anyone else. “She spun this story about people finding out she has previous with drugs and said that Kain asked her to hook him up... that part I can believe, that guys gains are way bigger than they should be,” he said, frowning. “But as much as I’d love to bust his ass for that, I can’t judge him for taking shortcuts... we’re only training ‘em here kid, not looking to employ ‘em.”
“So you believe that much then,” Aaron asked. “Of her story I mean... because that matches up with what she told me so far...”
“Yeah well, she probably rehearsed it plenty, right?” Matty asked, leaning against the wall and folding his arms across his chest as he lifting one leg to plant the soul of his foot against the wall too. “So I’m gonna guess she told you about Bobby too... how he saw them doing the deal and wanted in. I have to admit, that wouldn’t shock me either; I mean, not that I’m saying that Bobby uses already, but he’s lazy, you know that from running the odd class here...” he said, motioning to the room at large. “The idea of him being able to cut corners instead of busting his balls to get the body he wants... yeah, wouldn’t shock me.”
“So why’s it that hard to believe her then?” Aaron said, pointing over at where Bella was stood, still working the heavy bag. “I mean, it’s two guys you obviously don’t have a high opinion of--”
“My opinion on Kain isn’t exactly low brah,” Matty said, interrupting Aaron and Aaron nodded his head.
“Okay, so Kain does put the work in, he’s just looking for an advantage,” Aaron conceded, nodding. “But Bobby?” Aaron said, grinning. “Bro, we both know he’s an asshole... and let’s face it, running to you making some shit up about her dealing because she refused to sell to him? Is that really that much of a stretch of the imagination?” he asked, raising his brow at the Bostonian and Matty glanced over at Bella, looking thoughtful.
“I guess it gives us something to think about,” Matty said, looking at the brunette for a few seconds longer before turning back to Aaron. “It’s not my call anyway brah, not solely anyway... we’ll get together and talk about it at some point over the next few days, figure out what we’re gonna do... that’s why she’s so angry right now, I told her there’s a good chance that we’ll end up telling her that she has to go...”
“Yeah well, you want my advice bro?” Aaron said, throwing his bag over his shoulder, ready to leave again. “Don’t go rushing into any decisions without thinking it through... mistakes in her past don’t automatically mean she’s guilty this time. And talking to her? Well, I’ll be honest bro, I believe her. I genuinely don’t think she’s done what Bobby is accusing her of... not when this is her last chance before jail time.”
Matty nodded his head, gravely; it wasn’t like the ramifications were lost on him if they did decide to tell Bella that she had to leave. If they kicked her out, that was her last chance at staying out of jail, she may even lose the chance anyway if they spoke to her parole officer and told them about the accusation. It was something that they would truly have to consider before deciding what to do and despite Aaron having little to do with the whole process, he had to hope that they would make the right call. He didn’t know the girl, he’d spoken to her for the first time just now, but he believed her and something told him that her problems weren’t to do with who she was as a person but her circumstances. Aaron knew all about that, even if he had been rewarded due to his circumstances rather than a victim of them. “Yeah, I know kid...” Matty said, sighing. “Regardless, we’ll figure it out... look, I gotta get back; say hi to Scar for me, and the little one too...” he said and held a hand out to Aaron, who slapped his own against it.
“Will do man,” he said, nodding at Matty before turning to walk towards the door. Reaching the doorway, Aaron reached for the handle but turned to look back across the room at where Bella was still stood; she was lent over now, arms on her knees trying to catch her breath and it struck Aaron as funny that if you looked at her there in that moment, you’d never guess that she was there for the reason she was. Aaron knew that AnteUp took on one or two of these cases every few months, after the success of Harmony in the same position, but they usually managed to keep it quiet when they were there to avoid jail time... this chick though, she didn’t look like she was there to avoid being locked up; watching her work the heavy bag earlier, despite her technique not being worth shit, she looked like she was there to fulfil a dream, to learn how to fight. She looked hungry and maybe that was why Aaron had reached out to her in the first place once he walked out of the locker room. Was that why he’d spoken to her? It sure as hell wasn’t because he was attracted to her, he knew that much; this girl wasn’t his type, even if he was single... but there was something about her that went against the grain, that said her rap sheet wasn’t an accurate representation of this woman, and if her story was true and she was being set up by one of the other students... well, Aaron wanted to make sure that an injustice wasn’t done, even if he didn’t owe this chick anything. He just didn’t know how he could do that...
“Don’t you normally go around to Jason’s to film these things?” Scarlett Pearson asked as she stood behind the newly purchased video camera set up on a tripod in the middle of the lounge of the guest house on David’s property that the couple called home. It was a fair question; until as recently as his last promotional video, Aaron had used the camera belonging to Jason, filming his videos in his home-office that Jason too, used to film his own promos... but recent events in SCW had caused Aaron to think twice about this. It wasn’t that his uncle had turned his back on him or that he had even turned his back on his uncle really. But given recent events, and his uncles lack of enthusiasm for Aaron’s recent choices, the twenty-year-old wasn’t sure it was appropriate anymore for him to still do that. “I mean, not that I want you to think I’m complaining about helping you film this, because I’m happy to help... but it feels a little weird to be turning the lounge into a mini studio for the sake of a video...” she said, watching as Aaron fastened the black cotton sheet to the other end of the rail that held drapes over the window to serve as a backdrop for his video. “Hello? Aaron? Earth to Aaron?” she said when he didn’t say anything, and Aaron still didn’t reply until he stepped back down from the stool he was using to reach the rail.
“I am listening babe, but I’m trying to get this fucking thing right,” he said, taking advantage of the fact that Elysia was up at the main house with David and Regan so he could get this done. “And you’re right, I do normally head round there... but given what happened the last couple of weeks, I figured it may be good idea to keep my distance, you know?”
“But after what Jason said to you in the ring last week,” Scarlett started, seemingly a little confused. “I figured that you two would be fine... I mean, he didn’t exactly turn his back on you or anything, did he? He wished you luck if anything...”
“I’m not sure he exactly meant that, babe...” Aaron said, sighing. “He thinks I’ve gone too far over the other side, that I’ve lost what it was that made me me in order to stop caring about doing the right thing. And maybe he’s right,” he went on, shrugging. “But when the person I used to be allowed people to walk over him like a doormat, can you really blame me for taking a stand? Can anyone blame me for saying enough is enough?”
“I dunno, probably,” Scarlett said with a frown. “But then again, some people will judge you simply because you style your hair the wrong way or you book at the wrong hotel, so maybe it’s not the right call to worry about what people say anyway?” she added and Aaron nodded his head. Amen to that!
“You’ve got that right,” Aaron said, shaking his head. “But honestly, I don’t really care anymore... that’s kind of why I just flat out said fuck it and went to Regan. Guess that’s one way to get people talking, huh?”
“Past, Present, Future don’t exactly make it easy to like them...” Scarlett said, before grinning. “Fortunately, I already love you and Regan and Sienna is genuinely good people, so I’m half way there anyway,” she added with a wink that made Aaron smirk. “And I’ve told you before, anyway... I’ll support you with absolutely anything you decided to do in the business Aaron, I want you to achieve everything you could ever dream of... if this helps you do that the I’m right behind you...”
Smiling, Aaron walked over to Scarlett and kissed her on the forehead. “I know baby, and I appreciate it,” he said before turning his attention to the task at hand instead. “Alright, I’ve got no marker here unlike in Jay’s office, so you’ll just have to give me a thumbs up when I’m framed in the shot, okay?” he asked, and Scarlett nodded before flipping open the camera’s LCD screen and turning the camera on. Aaron took a step back and continue to slowly track back one step at a time until Scarlett gave him a thumbs up to let him know his head and shoulders were framed perfectly in the screen. “Ready when you are then...” Aaron said, slipping his hands into the pockets of his zip up hoodie and with that, Scarlett thumbed the record button on the camera and waiting for the red light to appear on the front of the camera, he got the show underway.
[[RECORDING UNDERWAY]]
“Boo... hiss, boo... tisk tisk tisk, how dare you thinkabout what’s best for your career right now, AJ Helms, how dare you consider your options and decide you have to do something that’s unpopular in order to salvage any hope for the way your career is going to go, you’re scum!”Aaron said sarcastically before rolling his eyes as theatrically as he could. “Why did you do it, why did you let Past Present Future cause the distraction, why did you take the easy win… in retort, I’ll simply say this; fuck off, are you dumb?!” he asked and a smirk spread across his face as he looked on into the camera as he continued to speak. “How long have I been saying this stuff, huh? How long have I had to tell the world that I’m fed up at how skewed this fucking company is, huh? How long have I been talking about how I’m sick to the back fucking teeth of the way I’ve been pushed around or used to suit this companies aims, overlooked for the opportunities I deserve as the future of this business! And that’s not hyperbole; at one point, you guys put your faith in me as the future - and maybe I believed the hype, who knows - but that didn’t happen and now I’ve got the board of directors looking at me as nothing but a tag team wrestler. They’re threatening me with low ball contract renewals, thinking they can force me into a pay cut? Ha. Nice try guys, but I’m not as dumb as you clearly think I am! See, everything I do now, that isn’t on me… when you’re backed into a corner you either tuck your tale between your legs and whimper or you come out fighting and after Breakdown two weeks ago, after Breakdown last week? Well, you can probably guess which one I’ve picked by now, surely… so whatever happens now, come what may? You only have the board to blame for my actions, because they forced me into this!” he said, glaring directly into the lens, no hint of remorse in his voice.
“I could blame Mr. D for all of this, that’s true,” he said as he continued to talk. “I could bring up that shit again about him trying to force me to fight my mom, about him throwing their low ball offer in my face… I mean, he is the representation of the board on a face to face level, but I’m not laying the blame solely at his feet. Nah bro, D. is just the tip of the fucking ice berg, a stooge that represents those greedy arrogant despots with their simple minded self-serving aims… or he was that anyway, now he’s just a drain on his health insurance suppliers but hey, I’m sure he’s got the dollar dollar to afford it, right?” he says with a quick smirk, barely pausing. “And now it’s good old Dave running the show, my old man, trying to keep the family together in the middle of this fucking shit storm that Jason and Amy created, or Bree created, or Regan, I mean how many fucking people are to blame for this right now, huh? Jesus. And then I go and make what seems to be an unpopular decision by choosing my own career and my own sanity over doing the right thing… and you’d think it was me who’d had their private life strewn across the media in the last week! That’s why I got into it in the way I did with Amy the other week on Twitter, because while I couldn’t care less that she’s double dipping - or should that be getting double dipped - right now, I do take exception to the fact that she thinks she can talk about being fucking disappointed in me when I don’t owe her a fucking thing! You want to talk about being owed anything, I covered for those two! I covered up their little secret for six months, going out of my way to ensure they could meet up without any hassle, helping however I could! And how was that related? Jason let me film promos on his camera and Amy throws shade at me on twitter for letting her down! I guess I should just add her to the list of people I need to apologise for, huh? Lists getting pretty fucking long now…”
Sighing, Aaron shook his head and turned away from the camera, pacing just a few steps to his left before turning and walking back in the opposite direction. He wasn’t looking at the camera, instead somplying talking out loud almost to himself as he paced back and forth. “It’s funny though, that people seem to think that you’ve got to live your life by their standards in order to be living a good life,” he mused to himself, scoffing a little before shaking his head, still pacing. “And I’m not talking an Alana Starr kind of good life here, all capitalised like a good biscuit, I’m talking the dumb idea of what’s good and what’s bad, from a moral standpoint, from a humanitarian standpoint or maybe even an entertainment stand point… this fucking business is filled with people who can’t seem to find a standard in which everything is judged on, which is what I find truly fucking hilarious about the hate I got after I decided to stop fighting fate and align myself with Past Present Future. It’s not like you can just pull up google or bing or whatever search page you choose and ask what the meaning of living a good life is, is it?! Fuck, if you think about it on a basic level, you could define anyone as someone who does the right thing, who leads a good life! Regan Street, most people call her a fucking bitch with an attitude problem and a short temper… but remove personal animosity from the equation and what is she? She’s a mother who fights for her family and doesn’t let work life compromise on who she is as a person! See what I mean? It’s all about personal opinion, and those who like to present opinion as fact, they can go to hell for all I care, because their opinion doesn’t mean a damn anyway…” he said, coming up to the spot where he started the video before turning to face the camera again before continuing to talk. “You can say I’ve sold out all you like, talk about being a disappointment until your heart’s content, but as far as I’m concerned, all I’ve done is ensure I’m doing what’s best for my own career in order to provide for my girlfriend and our beautiful daughter! The board thing I’m not worth enough for them to bother offering me a halfway decent contract well I’ll show them what I am worth, show them what I’m capable of. And if Daddy dearest wants to do his job to the letter of the law then he’s gonna have some decisions to make soon enough, whether he wants to keep this family together or do the job he’s been employed to do by Supreme Championship Wrestling, because he sure as fuck isn’t gonna be able to achieve both!”
“The hilarious thing though,” he said, bringing a hand up to rub the stubble on his chin before lowering his arm again. “Is the fact that the board wanted to try and play on my emotions and light a fire under me in order to get me to do their bidding… but while they achieved both of their aims, it’s backfired on them in exactly the opposite of what they wanted! And the irony is that all it’s done is get the attention on me again! So basically, I’ve got people talking, I’ve got the interest on my career and I’m not their stooge inside of the ring, so thank you very much for your interest guys, but fuck you very much too! If you want a hero, go knock on the door of someone who wants to play that role; go talk to Amy or Selena - though the irony of that situation is laughable right now - or hell, go knock on the door of Thirteen if you think James can help you out… but if he does answer your call, I hope he isn’t expecting to get anything fulfilling from it because that idea is bullshit at it’s damn finest, believe me on that,” he went on, shaking his head before sighing heavily. If anyone knew how fruitless it was to play the hero, it was Aaron and he half wanted to get that message through to people but at the same time, why bother wasting his energy? “And that seems to be what he’s doing… Thirteen, the guy who was once a thorn in everyone’s side, the guy who once ran over the bosses daughter no less… now trying to play the hero. I get it bro, I do. I get the desire to try and get vengeance or get your own back on someone who wrong you, I get the idea of wanting to get your hands on someone who has been nothing but trouble in the eyes of most and is practically universally hated… even if I’ve stopped caring, I can still understand logic when I see it! The thing is Thirteen, that fire that burns inside of you right now, the fire you have for getting your hands on Blake and kicking his ass from one post to the other, once it’s gone, once you’ve got what you wanted and beat his ass in that ring… it’s gone, and then what? What are you left with bro? An empty hole where that fire once was, because kicking his ass, it doesn’t change anything! Take it from me Thirteen, that doesn’t change a god damn thing and I should know because I did exactly the same six damn months ago! And you keep looking for a reason to fight that same fight; you keep looking for a reason to help… and how does the business repay you? By forgetting about you, that’s how! Claim you’re not doing this for them but for yourself if you like bro, I don’t care about your reasons, but when you’re giving a guy like David Helms a pep talk about how he shouldn’t stop pushing it’s more than clear to see that you’re trying to be the hero whether you want to lie to yourself about it or not!”
“I tried to be that hero once…” Aaron said, sighing. “I tried to be the guy who fought the good fight, who refused to let the business chew him up and spit him out. I tried being honourable and brave, not letting anything get to me… and look what fucking happened! It’s futile bro, it’s a waste of fucking time, and if you want to get anywhere in this dump then kiss goodbye to the guy you’ve become and remember why you were so fucking dangerous around here in the first place! You wanna make people reflect on their actions by winning a match? Good for you bro, great fucking job… while you’re at it though, why not see if the board are still looking for a knight in white armour because you may as well just become their problem solver if you’re gonna go on some honourable crusade anyway, showing people why they’re wrong to do what they do…” he says, shaking his head again but a grin seems to form on his face this time. “But while you’re thinking about that one, how about you answer me this… who the fuck made you the judge of how people should live their lives, huh?! You can spin me some spiel about having made mistakes if you want, I’ll be happy to let you bleat on about wanting to make amends for the shitty stuff you’ve done, but don’t you dare fucking judge me Thirteen, because in comparison to you I’m a goddamn saint! And say what you want about those ‘mistakes’ but those actions are what got you the goddamn world title so if you want to throw your own achievements under the bus go right ahead but I don’t regret a fucking thing I’ve done so far and bro, I’m just getting started!” he went on, smirking at the fact that people would probably be judging him when they finally got to watch the video on YouTube. If they wanted to do that, then so be it; he couldn’t control people who were simple minded enough to look at the world as if it was black and white. If they didn’t want to believe that there was a whole spectrum of monochrome in between then that was on their head. “You have to remember something though, dude… every villain in history believes themselves the hero, and to the villain, every hero is in the wrong! You can damn me all you like, everyone can turn their backs on me and condemn my decisions if it’ll make them feel a little more high and mighty but from where I’m standing right now, everything I’ve said or done has been justified. And while I have that on my side, I don’t give a fuck about what anyone says about me, because I have two very good fucking reasons to keep going and the words of anyone in this company won’t ever compare to that!”
Slipping his hands into the pockets of his jeans, Aaron shrugged his shoulders in an “Oh well” sort of way, clearly he didn’t care about being judged by anyone either way. “I’m not here to make anyone happy, not anymore…” he said, looking at his feet for a second before looking up; even if some of it was faked, given there was that niggling doubt at the back of his head that he was making a mistake, he wanted to project complete confidence over his decision, at least to the camera. “For better or for worse… a notion mostly associated with wedding nuptials I admit, but right now that’s something I’m going by in my career too; people can tell me i'm making a mistake if it’ll make them feel better about themselves. If it gives them the opportunity to clear their conscience and say they tried then awesome, I’m glad for them. No really, I am… but that doesn’t mean I have to give a damn about what they think or pay attention to the views thrown at me! For better or worse, I’ve made a choice and it was and is my choice to make… I’m not working my career by general consensus and neither am I letting popular opinion dictate what I should or shouldn’t be doing, no anymore anyway. I’m not going on for the whole ‘new me’ bulkshit, because honestly that’s not what this is…” he said, shaking his head calmly but with self assurance. “This is me finally being the person I want to be instead of who I think I should be! I always thought Regan had it wrong, that she married into a family that her actions would never allow her to truly fit into… but the way things have gone lately, with Jason’s guidance and the way SCW has dealt with me. With Regan’s advice, talking to Josh Hudson and Sienna… well, let’s just say that despite my attempts to fit into a Helms-shape space in this business, some pegs don’t fit. You could maybe make an excuse about me not being born a Helms, merely adopted into it… and it’s a fair assessment, I’ll give you that. But until now, I was trying to be what reputation said I should, despite everything that told me it was wrong; I was trying to fight for a business who clearly doesn’t give a fuck, not when the chips are truly down. The industry will continue long after I’m over the hill, but until recently I’ve been a useful idiot… but not anymore! Thirteen can let the board use him like the tool he is, Amy can play the hero or hell, even my friend Owen, give him a go at playing defender of all things good and true. I’m done being SCW’s Captain America, it’s fucking boring! Life doesn’t have to be boring though… and you know what? These last couple of weeks? They have been fun… so, fucking, fun. So why would I regret any of it, huh?” he said, finishing with a wink and a smirk, before nodding to Scarlett, who quickly reached forward and thumbed the stop button to end the video. They could edit out the delay afterwards before uploading it.
[[/RECORDING STOPPED]]
Unzipping his jacket, Aaron threw the hoodie into the couch before walking over to remove the black sheep from the curtain rod again, now that they were done. His back was turned to Scarlett and he didn’t see the look that she was giving him, would have missed it entirely if Scarlett had decided not to mention anything... but she didn’t. “Aaron?” she said softly and he looked back over his shoulder to see Scarlett standing there with her arms folded, though it wasn’t an aggressive stance but more as if she had her arms wrapped around her own body, like she was worried.
“Yeah?” he asked, stepping back down from the stool he was about to use to reach up to grab the tape from the end of the curtain rod to take the sheet back down. He could tell from just looking at her that she had something on her mind, and wasn’t sure he was going to like what that something was...
“Did you mean that stuff,” Scarlett asked. “About how Dave will have to choose between doing his job and saving his family, sooner or later?” she asked, and suddenly he realized why she was concerned.
Sighing, Aaron walked over to where Scarlett stood and unfolded her arms so that he could hug her. “If I thought I could sugar coat this I would,” he said as she wrapped her arms around him in return. “But honestly? I think that may be how this ends up... I mean, I don’t want it to obviously, but the way SCW has him basically keeping Regan on a leash? I can see it ending badly...”
“But it can’t happen Aaron, David won’t let it surely?” Scarlett said, still holding him tightly but arching her head up to look at Aaron as she spoke.
Aaron wasn’t really sure how to answer that, and he stalled by shrugging. “You know what they say about good intentions babe,” he said eventually, sighing. “I know he’ll try to keep everything together... but you know what this business is like Scar, it gets under your skin. You only have to look at what I just said in that video to see that...” he went on and Scarlett’s shoulders sagged again. Evidently the idea of the family falling apart was one that worried her considerably. “Look, maybe I shouldn’t film these things here, if it’s gonna end up leaving you upset about the things I say...”
“No, I... ugh...” Scarlett said, starting to refute the suggestion but she lost faith before she could even get going. “Actually... that may be for the best.”
“I was thinking some stuff over this morning anyway,” Aaron said, letting go of Scarlett so that he could look at her properly as he tried to explain. “I was thinking about maybe hiring a space out or something... maybe even talking to Matty about one of the rooms at the gym, though that’d be a huge pain given it takes more than an hour to get out there,” he said, frowning at the thought before shrugging it off. “I found an old radio station building that’s up for rent, it’s not stupidly expensive because it’s only one story and kind of run down...”
“How’s that going to help though?” Scarlett asked, looking confused.
“I’d fit some soundproofing and make a sort of studio set,” he said, shrugging. “I mean, it’s only an idea right now, but I could get some lighting in and paint the place to make it look cool, throw up some dressing behind and stuff and make it a place I can go to film these things so you don’t have to hear it if you don’t want to...” he explained, picturing it in his head.
“But I mean, don’t you need someone to help you shoot these things?” Scarlett asked, pointing at the camera on it’s tripod.
Aaron shook his head. “Not necessarily... this thing has a remote control, so in theory I could just thumb a record button and do it all on my own,” he explained, walking over to the camera bag and grabbing a remote control that was still wrapped in plastic, unused. “See... it’s just a little easier to frame everything up if someone helps you, but I can do it alone if I have to.”
“I don’t want you thinking you have to do it alone just to save me from hearing stuff though,” Scarlett told him, taking the remote control from him to look at it. “I mean, if it comes down to it, I’d rather suck it up and help than leave you struggling...”
“And what about times when I have to film and you’re not available?” he asked, trying to take the weight off of her shoulders. “There are times when you’re busy babe, and I don’t want your social life to be dictated by my career any more than it already is with you two travelling with me now... besides, I thought about that too!” he said, grinning. “I thought maybe I could talk to Dave or Matty, talk about seeing if any of the students want to gain some experience by helping out... it could be good for them to see how things work, you know?”
Scarlett looked at him thoughtfully for a moment before slowly nodding her head. “Okay, that could work...” she admitted. “And I can always help you decorate the place and make it look good for when you do film, even if I’m not involved in the actual recording process after...”
“Exactly,” Aaron said, smiling. And as he thought about it, it just made sense. He’d have somewhere to go that was both away from his home life and also away from the school, which meant he could avoid having to speak to Dave too much while things were still a little rocky between them. It also gave him somewhere that he could make his own and help build his brand for want of a better explanation, even if it wasn’t that big of a deal. He was going into business for himself with his new attitude and he would have to do just that, build his brand, now that he wasn’t going to have the full strength of the company behind him... maybe this could be a nice way to kickstart that. And besides; who didn’t want their own studio, huh?
