Post by Bryan Sweet on May 24, 2017 15:03:23 GMT
“Stop me if you’ve heard this a billion times before. It’s the story of a down-on-his-luck kid from the suburbs of Sacramento. He wasn’t an orphan, but he wished he was because his parents were no parents at all. So this kid set out on his own; washing dishes, shining shoes and blowing truckers in bathroom stalls to earn his way to the bright lights of Vegas. There he wandered into the gym of the great Chris Night where he begged and pleaded.”
The orphan stares up into the spotlight and speaks…
“Please sir, I haven’t much experience but I have heart, if you could train me I promise someday I’ll make you proud.”
The boy goes back to scrubbing as Bryan continues.
“But that Chris Night was a big ol’ Grinch and turned his back on the boy, leaving a mentally unstable sugar-fiend named Xavier to train him.”
Bryan snaps his fingers and the theme from Rocky plays.
“Cue the training montage. They slaved in the gym day and night until finally the boy was ready, and where did he make his big debut?”
Another snap cuts the music.
“Portland Pro Wrestling, where he captured a second-tier title and the ego was born. After a moderately successful run in Portland Pro the boy moved on to NGW where you may have heard, HE SAVED THE COMPANY.”
Bryan nods.
“Yep. He put the company on his back and carried it, along with a glorious winning streak, all the way to the Unified Title.”
He chuckles.
“This is the part where a lesser opponent would accuse me of being a fan because I know SO MUCH about his career but let me ask you Gavin, how could I not? Every single opponent has heard about the boy who picked himself up by his bootstraps and persevered, as if you’re the only one among us to ever face adversity, as if your story is somehow unique. Don’t get me wrong it’s not MY story. I’ve faced very little adversity outside of the ring and while you believe your obstacles made you stronger, I’m still twice the wrestler you’ll ever be. So spare me the story about how you’d be undefeated in NGW if not for Kenzie Rydell. If I want a blow-by-blow account of your match history it turns out there’s this new-fangled thing called the internet and I can look that shit up. I may be the weathered veteran in this encounter but you sure like to prattle on like you’re in a home.”
Bryan gently places his foot atop the boy’s hand to stop the scrubbing.
“Your past should stay there. All those opponents you’ve defeated up to this point? None of them were me. Falls count anywhere? Don’t care. I don’t need gimmicks to beat you. I don’t need you to spend twenty-four hours in a dog kennel before facing me in a Punjabi Prison Match. I’d rather beat you straight up in the middle of the ring where there are no excuses to hide behind. I’ve seen you searching. Bouncing from opponent to opponent, but you haven’t found what you’re looking for. Well here I am… Gavin Grimes versus Bryan Sweet. Don’t look to the past to prop you up. Puff out your chest and stand tall because you’ve earned the right to test yourself against the very best. Put down your phone, ease up on the hissy fits and focus. Look into my eyes and prepare yourself. Once again that little boy is standing face to face with a superior. How will you play it? Will you turn and run? Will you manufacture excuses? Will you be man enough to shake my hand when it’s over? So many questions you’re not ready to answer. It must suck to get to this point and still feel unprepared. Cheer up kid, once this is over you can go back to a world where Mason Moore is your biggest threat. It’s not that the competition was that much better when I was active, it’s that I WAS ACTIVE.”
Bryan laughs.
“It’s okay if you don’t understand. Just remember that no matter what happens, the sun will come out tomorrow… and I’ll STILL be better than you.”
Another snap plunges the stage into darkness as the scene fades out to the sounds of little orphan Gavin softly sobbing.