Danny Wheeler - "A Visit From An Old Friend (sort of)"
Jan 31, 2018 16:11:22 GMT -5
ViciousLothario likes this
Post by biggerontheinside on Jan 31, 2018 16:11:22 GMT -5
[It was evening. The sun was just beginning to set over the western horizon, painting an orange glow across the waters of the Pacific Ocean. It was an idyllic scene… the faint sounds of waves gently crashing on the beach and seagulls in the distance casting a relaxing vibe across Pacifica, California. Danny Wheeler was taking in the sounds through an open window in his apartment. He sat mindlessly scrolling through tweets on his phone, lost in his own world as he awaited a pizza delivery for supper.]
***KNOCK! KNOCK! ***
(That was convenient.)
[Danny hears the knock at the door and sets down the phone on a coffee table. As he heads over to the apartment door, Danny picks up some cash sitting on a small table to pay the delivery guy and opens the door.]
Bert: Hey champ! How's my favourite client?
***SLAM!***
[Danny Wheeler was as white as a ghost. He stood completely motionless after slamming the door shut on the person standing outside his apartment. It wasn't the pizza delivery guy he was expecting. No, this was the last person Danny Wheeler ever expected to see. His mind was racing. He was sure he must have had some sort of mini psychotic episode. Surely what he just saw in the hallway was an illusion or a trick of his mind. Danny, slowly, peered through the peep hole in the door and looked out into the hallway... and sighed...
It was Bert.]
Bert: C'mon now, champ. Are ya going to leave me out here all day?
[Bert MacGregor was not someone Danny Wheeler was looking forward to seeing today. The blob of a man, who easily topped three-hundred pounds, was a talent agent from Phoenix, Arizona. He had met Danny by accident and took him on as a client, promising to get the rookie into the big time of professional wrestling. Sadly, it didn't quite work out that way. Bert aligned Danny up with CORE Wrestling in Phoenix, which closed before it held a single show. A few years later Danny and Bert once again teamed up, this time in World Class Championship Wrestling. Danny won the Southwest Heavyweight Championship, but had to leave the promotion after a few months because he couldn't make things work in the real world. He wasn't making enough money to only be a wrestler in WCCW, and once he used up all his time off from his job in Pacifica, that was the end of his trips to WCCW, and his employment. Another venture in Canada with Acadian Wrestling and the NWA had ended in almost identical fashion. Now Bert was back out of the blue, and Danny was livid!]
Danny: Get lost, Bert!
Bert: Come on now. Is that any way to say hello to an old friend?
Danny: Bert... get off my doorstep or I swear they'll never find your body.
[There was no response. Danny stood motionless again, hoping his threat had done its job and driven the message home to Bert that he did not wish to be disturbed. Danny was finally able to breathe when he heard footsteps... ones far too light to be Bert leaving. In fact, they were getting closer. Puzzled, Danny looked into the peep hole in the door again, only to witness Bert paying the pizza delivery guy Danny had been waiting on! Wheeler opened the door, but Bert was already into the pizza pie, working his way through a slice.]
Bert: Dinner's on me, champ. Don't worry about it... minus the handling fee of course.
[Bert smiled as a piece of pepperoni fell off his slice and landed on his already stained tie. Bert didn't seem to notice.]
Danny: What do you want, Bert? I told you before that I don't want your help any more. You've screwed me over too many times, and it's not going to happen again.
Bert: Let's not live in the past, champ. I'm all about the future, and your future is going to be so bright you'll need shades.
[Wow, nothing makes a person cooler than quoting Timbak3 lyrics almost thirty years later.]
Danny: You know what, Bert? Sure, go ahead. Tell me all about your wonderful plan. I'm sure it's fan-freaking-tastic! Just lay it out there so I can bask in its glory and jump on this unbelievable opportunity for stardom.
[You could cut the sarcasm in Danny's voice with a knife it was so thick, but Bert either didn't notice or just didn't care as long as he got to make his sales pitch.]
Bert: Okay, so it’s been, what… five years since you’ve been in the ring?
Danny: More like seven, but go on.
Bert: Alright, seven… whatever! Point is, the ship seems to have sailed on you being a breakout star in America.
Danny: Well… an insult AND a foreboding statement. I can’t wait to see where this is going.
Bert: What I mean is just because you didn’t set the world on fire here in the US, that’s no reason you can’t still be a big star. I mean, look at ya, Champ! You’re still in shape that puts most athletes to shame. You just need a chance, an opportunity. And I found it for ya… Elite Wrestling Entertainment!
Danny: Never heard of it.
Bert: No, you wouldn’t have. It’s brand new.
Danny: Brand new?!!? I’ve already walked into start up promotions more than once only to have the places shut down a few weeks in, and now, THIS is your amazing opportunity? A start up promotion with no track record? Exactly what makes you think this will be any different, Bert? What makes you think that I want to take the life I’ve built up and throw a monkey wrench into the whole thing, and get back into wrestling on a whim?
Bert: Because it’s exactly what you need! There’s a long time promoter behind it, and they’ve got affiliation with the XHF network. It’s a chance to get in and make a name for yourself with the potential to work your way up through the ranks with some elite competition from some of the best promotions around today! Let’s face it, you can’t walk into one of the big companies in the wrestling scene and expect to get hired, but with this opportunity you can get in there and become a real star in Portugal!
Danny: Or Sweden, or Uruguay, or Turkmenistan if we’re just naming random countries.
Bert: No, EWE is in Portugal.
[There was a pause at this. It seemed like Danny’s brain was a old vinyl record, and the needle just skipped. It was such a random point that Wheeler’s brain couldn’t even begin to process it, and he stood there staring blankly, like a cow looking at an oncoming train. Well, he was stunned for a few minutes, then…]
Danny: Talk about burying the freaking lead! It’s in Portugal?!? PORTUGAL!?!?!? Bert, I don’t speak Portuguese!
Bert: Don’t worry about it, Champ. They’ll love your style. Exciting action speaks all languages. And like I said, maybe you didn’t get over in the States, but you can still be a big star. You’ve got all the tools, and this is how we make it happen.
Danny: Bert… get off my property.
Bert: C’mon, don’t be like that.
Danny: I’m serious. This might be the dumbest thing you’ve ever come to me with. There’s no way I’m packing up and moving to Portugal to wrestle.
Bert: Do you know anything about Portugal?
Danny: Uhhhh… they won the last Euro’s, right? Ronaldo?
Bert: Yes, but, do me one favour before you say no. Just Google “Portugal” and “beach” then tell me you’re not interested.
[Danny gave Bert some pretty serious side eye at this. Like that meme of Tommy Lee Jones looking skeptically over his newspaper. But Bert didn’t move; just waited for Danny to respond. Without a word, Danny grabbed his phone off the coffee table, and opened up Chrome. He Googled Portugal and Beach, and scrolled…
and scrolled…
and scrolled…]
Bert: So? Interested?
Danny: I’ll give you this much, Bert… you know me. Alright, let’s give this EWE a try.
[The smile on Bert’s face was almost as wide as his gut. He grabbed another slice of Danny’s pizza in celebration, and as Wheeler watched Bert gobble down the pizza he couldn’t help but wonder what he’d gotten himself into.]
end
***KNOCK! KNOCK! ***
(That was convenient.)
[Danny hears the knock at the door and sets down the phone on a coffee table. As he heads over to the apartment door, Danny picks up some cash sitting on a small table to pay the delivery guy and opens the door.]
Bert: Hey champ! How's my favourite client?
***SLAM!***
[Danny Wheeler was as white as a ghost. He stood completely motionless after slamming the door shut on the person standing outside his apartment. It wasn't the pizza delivery guy he was expecting. No, this was the last person Danny Wheeler ever expected to see. His mind was racing. He was sure he must have had some sort of mini psychotic episode. Surely what he just saw in the hallway was an illusion or a trick of his mind. Danny, slowly, peered through the peep hole in the door and looked out into the hallway... and sighed...
It was Bert.]
Bert: C'mon now, champ. Are ya going to leave me out here all day?
[Bert MacGregor was not someone Danny Wheeler was looking forward to seeing today. The blob of a man, who easily topped three-hundred pounds, was a talent agent from Phoenix, Arizona. He had met Danny by accident and took him on as a client, promising to get the rookie into the big time of professional wrestling. Sadly, it didn't quite work out that way. Bert aligned Danny up with CORE Wrestling in Phoenix, which closed before it held a single show. A few years later Danny and Bert once again teamed up, this time in World Class Championship Wrestling. Danny won the Southwest Heavyweight Championship, but had to leave the promotion after a few months because he couldn't make things work in the real world. He wasn't making enough money to only be a wrestler in WCCW, and once he used up all his time off from his job in Pacifica, that was the end of his trips to WCCW, and his employment. Another venture in Canada with Acadian Wrestling and the NWA had ended in almost identical fashion. Now Bert was back out of the blue, and Danny was livid!]
Danny: Get lost, Bert!
Bert: Come on now. Is that any way to say hello to an old friend?
Danny: Bert... get off my doorstep or I swear they'll never find your body.
[There was no response. Danny stood motionless again, hoping his threat had done its job and driven the message home to Bert that he did not wish to be disturbed. Danny was finally able to breathe when he heard footsteps... ones far too light to be Bert leaving. In fact, they were getting closer. Puzzled, Danny looked into the peep hole in the door again, only to witness Bert paying the pizza delivery guy Danny had been waiting on! Wheeler opened the door, but Bert was already into the pizza pie, working his way through a slice.]
Bert: Dinner's on me, champ. Don't worry about it... minus the handling fee of course.
[Bert smiled as a piece of pepperoni fell off his slice and landed on his already stained tie. Bert didn't seem to notice.]
Danny: What do you want, Bert? I told you before that I don't want your help any more. You've screwed me over too many times, and it's not going to happen again.
Bert: Let's not live in the past, champ. I'm all about the future, and your future is going to be so bright you'll need shades.
[Wow, nothing makes a person cooler than quoting Timbak3 lyrics almost thirty years later.]
Danny: You know what, Bert? Sure, go ahead. Tell me all about your wonderful plan. I'm sure it's fan-freaking-tastic! Just lay it out there so I can bask in its glory and jump on this unbelievable opportunity for stardom.
[You could cut the sarcasm in Danny's voice with a knife it was so thick, but Bert either didn't notice or just didn't care as long as he got to make his sales pitch.]
Bert: Okay, so it’s been, what… five years since you’ve been in the ring?
Danny: More like seven, but go on.
Bert: Alright, seven… whatever! Point is, the ship seems to have sailed on you being a breakout star in America.
Danny: Well… an insult AND a foreboding statement. I can’t wait to see where this is going.
Bert: What I mean is just because you didn’t set the world on fire here in the US, that’s no reason you can’t still be a big star. I mean, look at ya, Champ! You’re still in shape that puts most athletes to shame. You just need a chance, an opportunity. And I found it for ya… Elite Wrestling Entertainment!
Danny: Never heard of it.
Bert: No, you wouldn’t have. It’s brand new.
Danny: Brand new?!!? I’ve already walked into start up promotions more than once only to have the places shut down a few weeks in, and now, THIS is your amazing opportunity? A start up promotion with no track record? Exactly what makes you think this will be any different, Bert? What makes you think that I want to take the life I’ve built up and throw a monkey wrench into the whole thing, and get back into wrestling on a whim?
Bert: Because it’s exactly what you need! There’s a long time promoter behind it, and they’ve got affiliation with the XHF network. It’s a chance to get in and make a name for yourself with the potential to work your way up through the ranks with some elite competition from some of the best promotions around today! Let’s face it, you can’t walk into one of the big companies in the wrestling scene and expect to get hired, but with this opportunity you can get in there and become a real star in Portugal!
Danny: Or Sweden, or Uruguay, or Turkmenistan if we’re just naming random countries.
Bert: No, EWE is in Portugal.
[There was a pause at this. It seemed like Danny’s brain was a old vinyl record, and the needle just skipped. It was such a random point that Wheeler’s brain couldn’t even begin to process it, and he stood there staring blankly, like a cow looking at an oncoming train. Well, he was stunned for a few minutes, then…]
Danny: Talk about burying the freaking lead! It’s in Portugal?!? PORTUGAL!?!?!? Bert, I don’t speak Portuguese!
Bert: Don’t worry about it, Champ. They’ll love your style. Exciting action speaks all languages. And like I said, maybe you didn’t get over in the States, but you can still be a big star. You’ve got all the tools, and this is how we make it happen.
Danny: Bert… get off my property.
Bert: C’mon, don’t be like that.
Danny: I’m serious. This might be the dumbest thing you’ve ever come to me with. There’s no way I’m packing up and moving to Portugal to wrestle.
Bert: Do you know anything about Portugal?
Danny: Uhhhh… they won the last Euro’s, right? Ronaldo?
Bert: Yes, but, do me one favour before you say no. Just Google “Portugal” and “beach” then tell me you’re not interested.
[Danny gave Bert some pretty serious side eye at this. Like that meme of Tommy Lee Jones looking skeptically over his newspaper. But Bert didn’t move; just waited for Danny to respond. Without a word, Danny grabbed his phone off the coffee table, and opened up Chrome. He Googled Portugal and Beach, and scrolled…
and scrolled…
and scrolled…]
Bert: So? Interested?
Danny: I’ll give you this much, Bert… you know me. Alright, let’s give this EWE a try.
[The smile on Bert’s face was almost as wide as his gut. He grabbed another slice of Danny’s pizza in celebration, and as Wheeler watched Bert gobble down the pizza he couldn’t help but wonder what he’d gotten himself into.]
end