Post by Jack Diamond on Apr 24, 2018 19:48:22 GMT -5
Monday, August 7th- 8:58PM
Rossdale: What mate? Did you forget what I ordered already? Prodigy my ass. I wanted a General Tso’s Combo with—
Rossdale swings the door open expecting to see Barratt there to get his food order again but is shocked to see the ICW World Champion and back pedals a little, looking over Diamond’s shoulder to see if Bobby and Jenny are still in sight, but to no avail.
Rossdale: What the hell are you doing in here? I’m calling Keegan..
Diamond: Relax man. Relax. I’m not here to mess with you, we just need to talk.
Rossdale was in the process of reaching for the phone to call his head of security but stops and looks at Jack. He knows the champion is a stand-up guy, part of the reason why he aligned himself with Barratt instead of Diamond.
Rossdale: What is this?
Diamond: Like I said, we just need to talk. This shit with you and Rieter, man it needs to stop. The path you guys are on… this whole damn company will implode.
Rossdale: Bug off man. You don’t know what you’re talking about.
Diamond: You didn’t just kick your former best friend in the jaw hours ago? You are really off the rails Shawn.
Rossdale: Watch it! I will strip that title right off your sorry ass, you don’t come in here pretending to know what is going on with me and Lucas. There is a lot of history there.
Diamond: No, you’re not stripping anything off of anyone tonight Shawn. Look at yourself man. You’re going down a dark path here. Running with Bobby, all that because I wouldn’t do your bidding? I only wanted what was right for ICW, I had your back and you pissed it away for someone who played you from the start.
Rossdale: SHUT UP! I should fire your ass right now but I would rather see Bobby destroy you in that cell tonight! You run back and tell Rieter he doesn’t have to send you to fight his battles, he knows where I’m at and I would be more than willing to “distort” his mind a little more if he’s up to it.
Diamond: Lucas didn’t send me. I thought I could talk some sense into without Bobby here messing your mind up more. You are just too far gone, I’m just going to have to send you a message tonight against your boy.
Rossdale: You think you are walking out of here tonight the champ? You think you are walking out of here at all?
Diamond: I do, and I am. I will win the Cell match tonight and leave with MY title.
Rossdale: Over my dead body!
Wendesday, August 16th- 4:21PM
SPLASH!
Diamond is snapped back into reality by a drop of water on the little white square piece of paper he holds in his hand. A tear. He stares down at the name on it. Shawn McGregor Rossdale. The chilling words that his boss, or his former boss, had spoken to him less than ten days ago, echo in his head as Jeff Buckley’s rendition of “Hallelujah” plays on. He looks around, everyone is focused on the closed casket at the front of the room. Diamond, out of respect for the family who may not feel comfortable with someone who was openly opposed to their beloved Shawn being there, sits in the back beside Dakota Paige. She looks over and sees the tears rolling down Jack’s face and reaches for his hand. He leans over to her to whisper in her ear.
Diamond: I can’t do this. I have to get out of here.
Dakota looks at him, love and understanding in her eyes and pats him on the hand. Diamond quietly excuses himself and heads toward the back door of the funeral home. As he is leaving he catches someone in the shadow. It’s Bobby Barratt. Through the whole rivalry, through all the hatred, Diamond is surprised how seeing Bobby here affects him. He even has a match with him and Brett Stetson this coming Monday but he can’t help to hurt for him. Jack glances up front again where Brett Steston sits near some of Shawn’s family, doing everything that a best friend should do, supporting the family, he even has his arm around one of the relatives. Acting. That’s what Brett does best, act. It puts a pit in the depths of Jack’s stomach as he turns back to Bobby; The actual best friend, well, the new best friend after replacing Lucas Rieter. It saddens Jack in that moment that Bobby is holding onto the guilt of being there at the scene, leaving the scene to go to the show as Shawn took his last ride to the medical center. Jack knows he has to say something. Damn the rivalry. Damn the hatred. This is another human being and he is aching. Jack walks towards the dark corner where Bobby stands, head down, clearly in thought.
Diamond: Bobby, from the bottom of my heart man, I am sorry for your loss. For all of our loss.
Nothing.
Diamond: Look man, I know we can’t stand each other… I know I’m the last person you want to hear from right now, but just know that I’m thinking of you and Jenny. Shawn would want you guys to move forward in his honor.
Again, Nothing.
Diamond: Okay, uh… Just hang in there man…
Barratt doesn’t even acknowledge Jack. Does the hatred burn that deep inside of him? He just stares down, never once looking in Jack’s direction. Jack sees the hurt in his eyes, the pain. He is torn on how he should feel, but decides it is best not to dwell on the fact and discreetly makes his way out of the funeral parlor. He walks around to the side of the building where a bench sits along the sidewalk, sits down and pulls out a recorder.
Chapter Ten.
They say that only the good die young. What about the bad? The corrupt? Am I to believe that Shawn Rossdale, the man I had so many problems with, was good? Sure there were good things about him. He did, after all, create something special in ICW. He did provide an avenue for The Ace of Spades to have the most successful run of his career to this point. Where do we draw the line in life? How many good deeds outweigh the bad enough to swing that pendulum in the right direction? And then there is Bobby. Surprisingly, when I saw Bobby that day, I felt something that I never thought I would towards that man, empathy…
Diamond stops the record as he began to get a choked up a bit. This book deal, the autobiography, was yet another good thing that Shawn Rossdale had done. He remembered the day he asked to come into Shawn’s office and the excitement on Shawn’s face.
Monday, June 12th- 11:35AM
We are in Shawn’s office. He sits behind his desk, buried in a stack of papers as the ICW World Champion, Jack Diamond walks in. Diamond, still hot from the events of last night’s Bankrupt, walks in full of piss and vinegar.
Diamond: You wanted to see me?
Rossdale: Yeah, relax man. I’ve been thinking, I know I screwed up last night and I’m sorry. I want to make this right, truly Jack. So I’ve set up something I think you are going to love.
Diamond: I’m listening…
Rossdale: A book deal.
Diamond: I’m a wrestler man, not some Stephen King wannabe. What do I need with a book deal?
Rossdale: It’s all about you brother. An autobiography. Listen, the fans are behind you like I’ve never seen before. They want to know all about their hero Jack Diamond. This could be very lucrative for you and ICW. Give it some thought at least.
Diamond: You want me to write about my life in hopes that I promote ICW and make your richer?
Rossdale: No, I want you to write about your life in hopes of making us all richer! It’s going to be great! I’m thinking of setting up a whole department just for these types of projects and you will be in on the ground floor!
Wednesday, August 16th- 4:53PM
Voice: Mind if I sit?
Jack looks up, he was zoned out for a minute remembering Shawn. He puts the tape recorder back in his jacket pocket as he motions for the young woman to sit down. She was the relative who Brett Stetson was sitting beside. Apparently she is one of Shawn’s nieces, Julie.
Julie: You got a light? I needed a smoke, it is just too sad in there thinking I’ll never see Uncle Shawn again.
Diamond reaches in his pocket, pulling out a book of matches, a book of matches he’s been carrying ever since he found them in a Jackson hotel over a month ago. The night he hunted this woman’s uncle. He hands them to Julie.
Julie: Wonderlust? What is that?
Diamond: Uh, they were your uncles. Keep them, please I insist. So I saw you were being comforted by Brett Stetson in there, I’m surprised you are out here.
Julie: Yeah, that was a little odd wasn’t it? I mean, who the hell is that guy?
Diamond: Brett? Todd Hogan? 90210? You didn’t know him?
Julie: No, I never really watched the show. Funerals are weird sometimes, everyone is trying to “be there” for you and it gets really overbearing. Just because we shared this one thing in common, the death of someone, doesn’t mean we are best friends, ya know?
Diamond: Yeah, I guess you are right.
Julie: What about you, why are you out here? Shouldn’t you be in there paying your respects?
Diamond: I could really ask you the same thing. Respects. Respect is a thing that I’m not sure I had a lot of for your uncle toward the end, no offense. Hey listen, I’m sorry for your loss, but I need to go.
Julie: Thanks, and thanks for the matches.
Diamond gets up and heads to his vehicle to await Dakota. The flood of emotions as he gets behind the wheel take their toll on the champion as he drops his head and weeps. Why is this so hard for him? Shawn Rossdale turned his back on Diamond and has tried to make his life a living hell. Yet, here he sits crying. How does he go on? How does he step in that ring Monday against Barratt and Stetson and give it one hundred percent? What is in store for the champion, and Icon Championship Wrestling as a whole? These thoughts swirl in Diamond’s head as it begins to rain, tears falling from heaven, as he stares down at the paper once again. 1974-2017, Shawn’s life may have a pair of bookends on it, but his legacy must shine through the world champion, despite their differences. The scene comes to an end.