Visiting Our Roots (COTI Tag Match)

[TheImpossibleTraveler]

The rubber soles of Betsy Granger’s bright red Converse high-tops squeak softly against the linoleum floors of the University of California in San Diego. Her fingers run over the cool, concrete walls as she passes by classrooms, empty of students away on summer break. Nostalgia had prompted this visit today, mingled with a sense of urgency. The hallway seemed smaller than it had on her first day here as a seventeen year old freshman. Stopping instinctively in front of classroom #109 (Social Sciences), Betsy looks through the window at the darkened room. The only light came through the small window at the top of the wall at the far end, overlooking the curved rows of chairs and desks. Her hand drops to the handle and she twists it, relieved to find it had been left unlocked. Stepping through, she reaches over and flicks on the lights, watching the soft energy conserving bulbs brighten up the place a bit more. The massive white board was still filled with notes that she recognized well. A smile tugs at her lips as she turns and walks towards the seat that had once been her own.

Taking a seat, she folds her arms over the desk and rests her head on top of them as she flicks her emerald eyes around the room. Though it had only been seven years since she and Adam Sanders had haunted this class room, it felt like it had been thousands. So much had changed since then for them; hell, for all of Section B, when she thought about it. A warm smile creeps across her face as memories flood her mind; the wild nights she and her friends had spent together, haunting the second section of the RIMAC. It had led to friendships and fallout's, love, laughter, tears, and oh so much drama. And still today, through all of the craziness and time that had passed, the one steady thing that had remained was Adam.

“Uh-oh… She’s got her thinking face on.”

As if on cue, Adam’s voice cuts into her thoughts from the doorway of the classroom. Betsy looks up with a grin as she nods and gestures to the seat next to hers, that had once belonged to Adam several years before.

“So, if you don’t mind me asking… What exactly are we doing here?”

The Impossible Traveler studies the face of her Awkward friend before responding. “With everything that’s been thrown at us lately, I guess I was just longing for a bit of the old times. Before wrestling became our livelihood and was just our Saturday night party with the crew.” Betsy lowers her head into her arms again. “I know that the heat of competition has been hitting me a lot harder lately, and I apologize for letting that cast any doubt over my intentions. But we’ve got a huge opportunity in front of us, and I’m not letting anything get in the way of that.” She turns her head upwards towards his face. “Remember when we’d sit in these seats and gush over who we’d managed to run into at the last EXODUS show? I thought we were going to drive Professor Bana up a wall before the end of term.” She giggles softly as more memories come back to her.

Now Adam was giving a soft chuckle after remembering their college days. “Pretty sure he thought we were talking more about what was going on at the following evening’s main event than we did our group project.” It was all those matches and main events and shows that led to this for the two of them. Who would have thought that they would go from sitting next to each other in this very classroom to being a tag team in the ring. “So we’re going back to basics then? Is that the plan for… well, this?”

Betsy finally lifts her head again as she narrows her eyes in concentration. “What exactly would our basics be? It occurs to me that we were taught under two very different types of trainers, and it shows when we fight together. We work well as a team, but our styles haven’t exactly… meshed as much as I’d like them to. I’ve been thinking about this ever since Eddie issued the challenge and I want us going into this thing with our best possible chances for success.”

Betsy says something that actually pings in Adam’s mind for a moment. “You know, I’m not exactly sure who trained you in the beginning. I mean, I know it was me and Kenzie showing up at Adrien’s and sleeping in his spare bedroom. But I never did ask who got you started. Was it Chuck? Raven? Warstein?”

Meeting his eyes, she can’t help but grin as the names tumble from her lips. “Andreas and Heather Lasiewicz, actually.” She stifled a giggle as Adam’s eyes widened slightly. Nodding, she continues. “When I came back from Oxford, I ended up on their doorstep, much like you and Kenzie did Adrien’s. I was terrified, because of course that big Polish bastard was the one who answered the door… but they took me in. The reason it’s not common knowledge is because I asked for it to be kept quiet. I already had enough names attached to my profile by then, I didn’t need any more to urge my future opponents into thinking I was going to name-drop my entire career.”

“Wow.” Adam pauses for a moment as he ponders the two retired wrestlers who were teaching his best friend, all without him ever hearing about it. “I had no idea. What was… that like?”

“Painful.” she lets out a dry chuckle as she remembers the lessons she’d had at the hands of the Silver Eagle himself. “Heather was tough, but merciful to me. Andreas was exactly what you’d imagine he’d be like. Couldn’t be kinder outside of the ring, but once we were within those ropes… Well, you’ve seen how he gets. It’s no different, really, he just knows when to stop when it’s a student he’s working with.” Her face grows serious again as she focuses back on the present. “That said, it seems neither of us are fully prepared to go against the Network tag champs as a team. Which brings me to what I’ve been pondering about: do you think Adrien has enough free time in his schedule to work with us between now and Clash of the Icons?”

Adam remembers Adrien’s policy when it comes to asking for help: the door is always open. He’s lived by those words too. “Adrien absolutely would. He’s given me the gate code to his place and told me that the bedroom is still for my use when needed. And he only has to wrestle once a month for FWA.”

She nods as she slides back into the position she’d taken so many times at that desk. Crossing her feet casually over the desktop, she leans back and spreads her arms out behind her. “Perfect. The LadyBoys or whatever they call themselves won’t even know what hit them come showtime.” Closing her eyes, she begins to envision Impossibly Awkward holding up the XHF Tag Team belts high above their heads. “Just think of it, Adam, a few weeks from now, we could go from being those wide-eyed kids in the second row watching our idols to BEING the ones idolized. And it only seems right that both our first tag team title win be with one another. I honestly couldn’t think of anyone else in the world I’d want that run with…” Emerald eyes grow soft as she regards her best friend warmly. “I know you could have had a shot with Adrien by now. There’s still a part of me that’s glad it never came to pass; I know that’s a little childish and greedy, but I’m not sorry.”

“No, don’t be. It worked out in the end. I won the Prestige, and he won the X*Crown. We ended up having to place our focus elsewhere. And now, with AWF closing, I need to make a new mark on the Network. And I think the XHF Tag Team Titles is just the way to do it.”

“Thanks for choosing me, Adam.” Taking his hand, she squeezes it gently. “I suppose there’s nothing left to it but to do it, wouldn’t you say?”

“Let’s go be tag team champions!”

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“Fucks sake guys, could you pick a pair to be the XHF tag champs and stick to it? Okay, fine, if it’s to be Curtis Kanyon and Steve Awesome, so be it. I’m thinking Donny realized what an uphill battle this had become and said ‘fuck it’; or perhaps Kanyon realized he needed a stronger partner. Whatever the reason, the team has changed once more, but I see very little reason to be alarmed by it. Not one, but two former X-Crown champions to go up against? Fine by me, bring your X-Crown game, boys. You’re going to need it when you go up against Impossibly Awkward.

Hey Steve, your first mistake is thinking you’ll ever get to be on top of me. Get used to feeling my weight baby, because you’re about to find out that I never needed Adrien’s help taking you out. Call to Arms was but a taste of what I’m capable of, and I’d highly encourage you to not put too much stake based on that one night. The landscape is going to be vastly different when you get into that ring with Adam and I; only when it’s too late will you and Kanyon realize just what you’ve gotten yourselves into. It’s easy for arrogant sons of bitches like the two of you to write off a couple of ‘kids’ who are still feeling their way through the industry. A couple of titles between us, a handful of tag matches, is Impossibly Awkward REALLY that much of a threat? You better bet your sweet ass we are, you don’t even know the half of it. You think you’ll get some sort of redemption over me after Call to Arms; but much like your films, they’ll end in a disappointing flop. That’s what happens when you confuse being ‘THE’ shit with just being outright sewage.

As for you, Curtis Kanyon, congratulations are in order. It’s no easy feat, being the sole survivor of an event like Call to Arms. Good luck making your way all the way back to the X-Crown, however. I imagine that’s the path that’s going to offer the most resistance; well, that and the upcoming XHF Tag Title defense you find yourself embroiled in. Nice of your partner, who pulled YOU in as a savior, to duck out on you now. All told, I personally think he did you a favor. Even though Steve Awesome comes off as an egotistical clown, there’s no denying that the talent is there. One doesn’t become a champion on accident. But be assured, Sir Kanyon- just because neither Adam nor I have held an X-Crown championship as yet doesn’t mean it’s not in our cards. There is a reason we’re looked at as two of the shining star talents of the AWF; I came in and liberated Rob Garcia of the Phoenix Championship in only my second match. Not that defeating a Rev should set the bar for anyone’s standards, but I felt it was worth mentioning one more time. Then you have Adam, the current and possibly final, Prestige champion… Though, I admittedly might have something to say on that front as well. Also, thank you for taking over the presidency from that Tangerine Nightmare of a ‘man’. While it may not have been a perfect presidency, it was leaps and bounds better than what we’d been subjected to. You can talk all the shit you want on AWF; the doors are closing and it won’t make a lick of difference after Clash of the Icons.

Some friendly advice, boys: keep an eye on the doors, because what’s coming out is more than you bargained for. With Adam and I on the loose, the hottest free-agents in the network, the world has become our oyster. And entering that pool as the XHF Tag Team Champions sounds even sweeter to me. Mayhaps it’s a good thing Donny flaked out when he did; nothing like getting ‘The Bros’ back together for another round, right? It’s always good to have someone around that you can trust behind your back.

I mention this because there are folks who will be watching Adam and I with unrelenting scrutiny. For some odd reason, folks seem to think that just because Adam and I go head to head later that same night for the Prestige Title, it’s going to result in one or the other’s betrayal. More fingers have been pointed at me as being the suspicious one, and you know what? I’m good with it. If you want to play me up like the bad guy, go ahead. I can play that role, but not the way you see it. Let’s be serious for a moment: if Adam didn’t think he could trust me, in any capacity, he wouldn’t have mentioned wanting to take our chance at this. Even knowing our opportunity was tucked safely in our pockets for whenever we wanted it, Adam still agreed that now was the time to pursue this venture. Why, you ask? It’s simple: nothing comes before our friendship. As cliche as this may sound, Adam is my brother in every sense of the word. Something that people seem to want to twist into something else; you can try, but there isn’t an ounce of romantic involvement between us. What we have transcends romantic notions and sexual chemistry; we’ve a bond that is so strong, nothing will ever tear it apart. No man or woman will ever whisper in our ear and break us apart from the core.

Clash of the Icons presents a lot of opportunities for Adam and I, and some of them are very much in conflict. But when it comes to winning the XHF Tag Team Titles, our focus couldn’t be sharper. The goal couldn’t be any clearer. So try whatever cheap tricks and foul tactics you’ve got hidden in those fancy pants and glossy hair of yours, Steve. Protect that pretty face as you try to catch me. Come after me with all your power and might, Curtis. I invite you to try and keep me down with all your strength and brutality. Both of you just bring me every-fucking-thing you’ve got, because it’s going to take everything you both have to hang on to those belts.

And it still won’t be enough.

Clash of the Icons ends one way, boys:

Impossibly Awkward Victorious.

Welcome to the end, fellas.”