Post by matt on Mar 11, 2021 11:55:18 GMT -6
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Minneapolis, Minnesota
Off Camera
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“The Archangel” Jessica Lasiewicz’s mind is not in the right place. That is evidenced based on the fact that she sits alone on a packing crate off in a far corner, staring blankly ahead. The Archangel is typically dressed in much finer attire, in tune with her manta of being #Fabulous. But tonight she is much more simply attired in a pair of denim jeans, black boots, and a black t-shirt with “Polish Spirit” written on the front, a nickname once used by her legendary father Andreas Lasiewicz. While the pink haired beauty can certainly see everyone rushing here and there all over the backstage area, her focus is not on them. As a matter of fact, Jessica Lasiewicz isn’t even certain why she is here in Minneapolis to begin with.
The obvious answer is to show up for her wrestling match, but even that argument doesn’t make sense when you consider the fact that neither she nor her half-sister and tag team partner Kimberly Williams were scheduled to appear today. The only thing that brings her out here tonight is here damnable commitment. The Archangel was raised by two proud wrestling dynasties, the Lasiewicz and the Jones families, and between the two of them she was taught a healthy respect for the business. Even if she does not have to be here, she will still show up. Even if she does not particularly want to be here, she will make it a point to attend.
Tonight is one of those nights that young Lasiewicz wishes that she could just forget about her damned sense of commitment and obligation to the business. She wishes she could just tell the business to shove it and take the night off to rest and recuperate, not from any physical ailment but from a mental and emotional one. For the past few weeks she has had to bear witness to her maternal family, the Joneses, seemingly self-destructing before her very eyes with Jessica’s half-sister, Kimberly’s twin sister Marie Jones, taunting and provoking their mother Angelica Jones into a fight. And a few days ago, at a GCW event, Marie and Angelica had their match. And it ended with Angelica Jones suffering yet another concussion; one that may have permanently ended her career.
Witnessing her mother’s suffering at the hands of her own daughter wasn’t bad enough. Jessica has also had to witness Kimberly Williams feel torn apart emotionally by this entire situation. The Woman Scorned has always had a deep seeded loyalty to Marie Jones. But when Marie decided to target her own mother, that loyalty came into question. Kimberly was distraught and confused as to what she should do and how she should deal with this.
It is for this reason that Jessica feels very disconnected right now from everything else going on around her at the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Jessica feels guilt. Not that any of this was her fault. Jessica and Kim’s sister Marie clearly is at fault for everything here. But Jessica does feel guilty that she didn’t provide enough emotional support or assistance for Kimberly nor did she try to stop Marie from her plans. Jessica nicknamed herself The Archangel because she wanted to fight for justice and fight for what’s right in everything she does, both personally and professionally. But how can she truly call herself The Archangel when she cannot even help her own family?
“GET BACK HERE YOU THIEVING SON OF A BITCH!” This angry shout is unexpected and quickly snaps Lasiewicz out of her trance but the voice is unmistakable; it belongs to “The Woman Scorned” Kimberly Williams. Jessica quickly leaps to her feet and scans the area, looking for her sister. She has been concerned about Kimberly ever since this whole thing began. It hit Williams the hardest and it has shown due to her strange behavior. Granted, strange for Kimberly Williams should be normal but that’s the thing. Kimberly has gone back and forth from her bizarre eccentric personality to being a genuinely vulnerable and very emotional wreck of a human being. Lasiewicz never knows what she’s going to get from one moment to the next when it comes to her half-sister. That in and of itself speaks to Kimberly’s mental state and when she is in this state of mind, she could get into big trouble.
So what kind of trouble has The Woman Scorned gotten herself into now? Jessica walks away from the packing crate and starts looking for her sister. All she has to do is follow the sounds of shouting from down the hall. The Archangel continues down the hall until she is nearly run over by a guy wearing a Pizza Hut uniform carrying a pizza box in one hand and Kimberly’s SCW Lizard Championship title belt in the other.
“What the fu…” before Jessica can finish her sentence she is nearly knocked over again, this time by Kimberly Williams whose face is covered in marinara sauce. But even through the marinara Jessica can tell that Kimberly is pissed. The Woman Scorned is barefoot, wearing torn denim jeans, and a black t-shirt which reads “All Hail The Lizard King” in purple lettering.
“Get back you damned pizza runt!”
Kimberly chases after the pizza guy. It has become clear what happened here. This pizza guy challenged Kim for the Lizard Championship. Was he successful or did he just steal it? That’s another question altogether. But one thing is certain and that’s that Jessica does not want her half-sister to murder this guy. Jessica chases after the pair, hoping she can keep Kimberly from doing something she may regret later.
The pizza guy reaches a door and swings it open wildly, entering the parking garage. Unfortunately for him the door stays open for Kim, which saves her time. The pizza guy stops, opens up the pizza box, and takes out slices of pizza and begins throwing them at Williams. This slows her up just a little, but not enough. So he throws the entire box at her, tripping her up and knocking her off of her feet. The small man starts laughing.
“HaHaHa! You foul smelling turd blossom! You aren’t smart enough for Ricky B Sharp!” He turns and starts to run again.
“Did you just say I smelled like shit?!” Kimberly snarls and resumes her chase. Without having to balance the pizza Ricky B Sharp can get up some more speed. Kimberly though is keeping up rather well. Sharp spots his vehicle, a small sedan with a pizza hut logo on top, nearby. He smirks, thinking he is home free…
...and that is when Jessica Lasiewicz sticks her foot out to trip him up. Sharp falls face first to the concrete parking lot. He scrambles back to his feet but Kimberly quickly catches up and snatches him by his neck and slams him up against the side of his own vehicle.
“Who the hell ordered a fucking pineapple pizza?!”
“Uh…” the pizza guy’s voice trails off and his voice is shaky, full of uncertainty. The Woman Scorned smirks knowingly, nodding her head as her own suspicions are seemingly confirmed.
“I bet no one ordered a pizza. Did they?!”
“The referees?” Ricky says, not sounding very convincing.
“That’s bulls...actually, some of those referees are rather strange. I can see them eating this damn monstrosity that is pineapple pizza. But still, even if someone did legitimately order this pizza, does that give you the right to challenge me...ME OF ALL PEOPLE...for the prestigious Lizard Championship?!”
“You...you did…” Ricky is clearly scared for his own well being as he tries to come up with an excuse for his actions “...you did challenge everyone.”
“I meant WRESTLERS! Not a freaking pizza guy!” Kimberly reaches into her pocket and produces a shank. “I have a half a mind to gut you right here and now you little worm!”
“NO!” He screams loudly, almost sounding like a high pitched squeal. “You can’t! I...I’ll...I’ll sue! I’ll file charges! I’m not a trained wrestler and this is assault!”
“I’ve been to jail once. Do you think I care?” Kimberly says with an evil grin. Jessica looks into her half-sister’s eyes to try and gauge how serious she is about this. Unfortunately it is rather difficult to read Kimberly right now, especially with the state of mind she’s in. She could be bluffing but then again, Kimberly has done this sort of thing before. It’s best to play it safe. Lasiewicz decides to gently pull her sister off of the frightened Ricky.
“Stay back, Kim. I’ll handle this.”
“But…”
“Kim.”
Williams sighs and relents. “Fine.”
Lasiewicz approaches Ricky, who looks on at the pink haired woman with some concern. Jessica casts a glance back at Kimberly and speaks in her native Polish tongue “Zrobić zdjęcie.”
Jessica smiles devilishly as she turns to face Ricky. “Hello, mister….Sharp? Ricky B Sharp? That’s what you said your name was, right?”
“Yes. Thank you for helping me and…” Ricky is silenced when Jessica puts her hand up to his mouth.
“Silence. Listen. What is your job, Mr. Sharp?”
“I am a delivery guy for a local Pizza Hut. But what does…” again Jessica puts a hand up to silence him.
“Silence. Speak when spoken to. Understand?” He nods his head. “Good. So, you are a pizza delivery guy. As a pizza delivery guy you have every right to do your job without being interrupted and especially without being assaulted. If Kimberly here were to slam you against your own vehicle and threaten you with that shank, that would most definitely be assault. Civil charges would be probably, possibly even criminal charges. Am I right?”
“Yes! Yes, of course! But I will not press charges if you just let me leave!” Ricky seemingly is begging at this point. Jessica isn’t done, though. She shakes her head.
“Not yet, Mr. Sharp. Now you are here delivering a pizza...or at least, we’ll assume you are here delivering a pizza and just doing your job...and if that’s the case you should be allowed to do your job. But do you know what my job is and what Kim’s job is? I mean, you should know because you are not stupid. You know where you are.”
Sharp nods his head. “Yeah...some kinda wrestling event.”
“Correct. And Kim and myself we are wrestlers. We wrestle for SCW, MWE, and GCW. Now SCW may not have sanctioned the Lizard Championship but she is proud of it. Proud to the extent that she issued an open challenge to ANYONE within earshot of her challenge. And that includes pizza delivery men. You were within your right to take her down but in doing so you entered her world. And you also forfeited any rights you had as ‘just a simple pizza delivery guy doing his job’. The mere fact that you have the Lizard Championship belt in your possession means YOU assaulted her first. I don’t think you could win in court. As a matter of fact, if I turned a blind eye and let my sister destroy you right here and now, I am fairly certain that the courts would rule in her favor, because YOU entered her world.”
Lasiewicz slowly steps away from Ricky. She reaches out her hand to Kimberly, who then proceeds to place her cell phone in her hand. Jessica proceeds to start pressing a few buttons while still talking to the frightened pizza guy. “So you can take your chance against Kim, take your chance in court knowing that your odds aren’t exactly as good as you think considering the fact that you struck her first. Or you can just return the Lizard Championship to my sister and we can all go our separate ways…” Lasiewicz then shows Ricky a picture that Kimberly had secretly taken using the phone, it is a picture of Ricky standing with drenched khaki pants in a small puddle that one can only assume is his own urine “...and I can also guarantee that this picture of you pissing your pants in fear of Kimberly Williams never sees the light of day.”
Ricky looks back at Kimberly whose evil grin has returned to her face. He knows that this deranged ginger is jumping at the chance to carve him up just like a...well...like a pizza. He looks over at Jessica and realizes both of these women are serious. He sighs and nods his head.
“Yeah...alright…” he holds out the Lizard Title belt, offering it back to Kimberly “...here.”
Kim and Jessica exchange a look. Jessica nods her head and speaks, again in Polish “blokada nadgarstka.”
Kimberly smirks. She takes the Lizard Title belt...but in one swift, fluid motion tosses it to Jessica and then locks an overhead wrist lock in on Ricky B Sharp. The poor pizza guy starts shrieking again. “Aaaaaaaggghhh!!! Let go! Let go!”
“Is that a submission?”
“YES! I GIVE UP!”
Kimberly releases the hold. “Good enough for me! Winner and new LIZARD CHAMPION…” the deranged redhead takes her title belt back from Jessica “...KIMBERLY WILLIAMS!”
“Now leave, if you know what’s good for you.” With that, Jessica turns and walks away. Kimberly Williams follows closely behind, skipping away happily with her Lizard Championship belt in tow. Kimberly quickly catches up to her half-sister and follows her back across the concrete floor of the parking area and then they re-enter the arena through the same doors that Kimberly had just chased the pizza guy through a few minutes earlier.
“Thanks for the help, Jess! With you by my side NO ONE will take the prestigious Lizard Championship away from me!”
Jessica sighs as she turns to face Kimberly. “Prestigious? Even though SCW doesn’t recognize it?”
“SCW doesn’t have to. But The Lizard King does.”
“How the hell do you know that? Have you spoken to Mr. D?”
“Ha!” Kim points at Jessica. “You admit it! Gio is right! Mr. D is the Lizard King!”
“I didn’t say that! I just…” Jessica sighs and nods her head, relenting to Kim’s fantasy “...fine. He’s the Lizard King.”
Kimberly studies the face of her half-sister and can tell based upon the distortion and angst that she is clearly frustrated. The Woman Scorned gently pats Jessica on her head as if she were a sad puppy dog. “Awwww what’s wrong with my sissy? Are you upset because we had to chase down and threaten a pizza delivery guy?”
“I admit I would rather use my talents for something other than keeping that ridiculous championship around your waist.” Jessica smirks. “But then again, I’d do anything for you.”
“Love you too!” Kim embraces Jessica in a tight sisterly hug. Upon breaking the hug Kimberly tilts her head to one side and furrows her brow as she studies her expression intensely.
“You’re still upset about something. Right?”
“It doesn’t matter.” Jessica responds as she turns away from The Woman Scorned and begins to walk away. She approaches the packing crate from earlier. Kimberly doesn’t let this deter her. The reigning (and new?) Lizard Champion follows her half-sister until she finds Jessica sitting again on the crate.
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“I’d rather not.”
“Well then I’ll just hold my breath until you do!” Kimberly takes in a deep breath and begins to hold it. Jessica rolls her eyes. Kimberly continues to try and hold it for as long as she can but she can only go for so long. She lets it out and starts breathing heavy. “Shit! That was tougher than fighting that pizza guy! Lemme try again…”
“No,” Jessica says chuckling “it’s ok, Kim. You’re right, I am upset. Well, not upset really. More worried.”
“Worried about what?”
Jessica points a finger at Kimberly. “I’m worried about you.”
“Worried about moi?” Kimberly expresses a sense of shock and surprise upon hearing this. “You have nothing to worry about, Jess! I am up to the challenge of facing anyone and everyone who may want this Lizard Title!”
Kimberly happens to notice a man in a referee’s shirt walking by. “Hey! Zebra! You wanna piece of this?!”
The referee shakes his head and rushes away quickly. Kim smirks and turns to face Jessica. “See? I’m fine!”
“That’s not what I mean and you know it.” Jessica scoots over to make room for Kimberly on the packing crate. Kimberly approaches and sits down next to Jessica. “You haven’t been acting like yourself lately, Kim. I mean, you always have acted rather strange. For a long time I never really quite understood it. That’s partially why I never did trust you. But working with you it has helped me to finally understand you. You would use the crazy actions as a front to hide your emotional vulnerability. Some think that’s not a healthy way to deal with emotions but hey, who am I to judge? It has worked for you for so long. But lately you have had a harder time keeping up the appearance of Crazy Kim.”
Jessica points into Kimberly’s eyes. “I saw the passion in those eyes. I also saw your eyes a few days ago when our mother suffered that concussion. You were angry....passionately angry about what Marie did.”
“Is that bad?” Kimberly asks quietly.
“No, it doesn’t have to be. Most people have no problem expressing their passion and their emotions. Your way of dealing with the emotions and the passion is hiding it, keeping it bottled up and away from the public.”
“I never wanted them to use it against me.”
“And that’s fine. But you’re starting to lose control, Kim. You’re starting to express yourself whether you want to or not.”
“What are you saying, Jess?”
“I’m just saying that this isn’t you. And because this isn’t ‘normal’ for you, I am concerned.”
Kimberly sighs deeply and nods her head. “Yeah...well, I’ll handle it someway. I always do.”
Jessica wraps an arm around her sister’s shoulder. “But you don’t have to handle it alone. Remember that you have a family now. I haven’t always been there for you in the past and for that I’m sorry, but I am here for you now. We are a team, not just as Vengeance but as sisters. And sisters look out for one another.”
“Thanks, Jess...I appreciate that…but you don’t need to worry about me so damn much. I know I haven’t been myself lately, but that’s just because I’m working through some stuff. I’ll deal with it.”
“We’ll deal with it.” Jessica remarks, correcting her eccentric half-sister. “We’re a team.”
“Exactly. We’ll take care of it. But there is something you should know.”
Lasiewicz can tell based on the tone of Kimberly’s voice that something is amiss. The Polish native furrows her brow out of curiosity. “What is it?”
“Sorinah…”
“What about her?” Jessica’s face grows far more grave, more serious, upon the mention of the name of Sorinah Floreschu, the Romanian woman who used to manage her career once upon a time. Jessica watches Kimberly’s expression. Kimberly sighs deeply.
“We’ve been in contact. Very close contact, actually.”
“Wait, what?! What do you mean by ‘very close’?! What has she been doing to you?”
“Nothing bad if that’s what you’re worried about. She has been helping me out here and there with some minor things, helping my career in small ways like arranging for travel and places to stay at the various stops from city to city where we wrestle. She’s also been providing some helpful advice here and there. She’s almost like an advisor.”
Lasiewicz shakes her head out of frustration. The Archangel has a history with Sorinah, one that did not end well. She does not trust Sorinah and the fact that Kimberly seems willing to is bothering her. “That’s how it all starts, Kim. She acts like she’s there to help, she acts like she’s there to advise you, but then she shows her true colors. She’s a sociopath. She nearly ruined my life and she will ruin yours if you aren’t careful.”
“You talk as if I don’t know who she is…”
“You never dealt with her before. But I have.”
“You’re right, I haven’t dealt with her before, but I have dealt with her sister. Emma Floreschu raised me. And yeah, Emma Floreschu DID ruin my life. Sorinah herself admits that and she feels guilty over what her sister did. She feels guilty that she couldn’t stop Emma from trying to ruin me….and by extension ruining our family. That’s why she’s helping me, Jess. She’s trying to make up for the sins of her sister.”
Lasiewicz ponders this for a moment. It seems hard to believe. Jessica, for one, doesn’t believe, but based upon the look on Kimberly’s face, she can tell that Kimberly does believe. Kimberly is buying whatever it is that Sorinah is selling. The Archangel sighs deeply and shakes her head.
“And you believe her?”
“Yes, yes I do believe her.”
“I think you’re making a big mistake. She’s a con artist, Kim.”
“Maybe she is, maybe she isn’t. But why shouldn’t I give her a chance? She didn’t ruin my life, Emma did. And so what if she herself has done bad things in the past? Everyone deserves a second chance. I know that better than anyone else and that’s why I’m willing to listen to her. And she also wants to help you. She wants to make up for what she did to you by helping you in the same way she’s helping me.”
Jessica immediately shakes her head. “She has an agenda, Kim. I don’t care what she’s told you or how sincere she may seem, but I know her and I know she has an agenda. You just don’t know what it is.”
“Yeah? Well neither will you until you hear her out.”
Lasiewicz arches a brow. “Are you suggesting I come visit her?”
“Yes. That’s all she wants. She wants a chance to speak with you. She wants you to hear her out. No strings attached.”
“No strings?”
“None.” Kimberly says, shaking her head. The Archangel must admit that this offer does sound intriguing. Still, the distrust is there. She does not trust Sorinah Floreschu. She betrayed Jessica and tried to ruin her professional career. She was saved by the actions of her best friend Summer Collins. She may never trust Sorinah again. But for some reason Kimberly does trust this Romanian woman. And Jessica does trust Kimberly. It is a difficult decision for Jessica Lasiewicz but the only answer she has is the safe one.
“I’m sorry, Kim. But right now I can’t. I just can’t find in my heart to even trust that woman again and give her a chance let alone forgive her and let her back into my life.”
“I understand. Forgiving someone who has wronged you is tough. But you forgave me.”
“But that’s different.”
“How so? Look, I’m not asking you to forgive her or even trust her. You can listen to what she has to say and then tell her to shove it up her ass for all I care. All I ask is that you hear her out.”
Jessica shakes her head. “I just can’t. I’m sorry.”
“Will you at least think about it?”
“For you, Kim…” Jessica nods her head “...yes, I’ll think about it.”
“That’s all I ask.”
“But I make no promises. Understood?”
“Yes, ma’am!” Kimberly says, playfully saluting Jessica. The Archangel chuckles.
“At ease, soldier.”
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Off Camera
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“The Archangel” Jessica Lasiewicz’s mind is not in the right place. That is evidenced based on the fact that she sits alone on a packing crate off in a far corner, staring blankly ahead. The Archangel is typically dressed in much finer attire, in tune with her manta of being #Fabulous. But tonight she is much more simply attired in a pair of denim jeans, black boots, and a black t-shirt with “Polish Spirit” written on the front, a nickname once used by her legendary father Andreas Lasiewicz. While the pink haired beauty can certainly see everyone rushing here and there all over the backstage area, her focus is not on them. As a matter of fact, Jessica Lasiewicz isn’t even certain why she is here in Minneapolis to begin with.
The obvious answer is to show up for her wrestling match, but even that argument doesn’t make sense when you consider the fact that neither she nor her half-sister and tag team partner Kimberly Williams were scheduled to appear today. The only thing that brings her out here tonight is here damnable commitment. The Archangel was raised by two proud wrestling dynasties, the Lasiewicz and the Jones families, and between the two of them she was taught a healthy respect for the business. Even if she does not have to be here, she will still show up. Even if she does not particularly want to be here, she will make it a point to attend.
Tonight is one of those nights that young Lasiewicz wishes that she could just forget about her damned sense of commitment and obligation to the business. She wishes she could just tell the business to shove it and take the night off to rest and recuperate, not from any physical ailment but from a mental and emotional one. For the past few weeks she has had to bear witness to her maternal family, the Joneses, seemingly self-destructing before her very eyes with Jessica’s half-sister, Kimberly’s twin sister Marie Jones, taunting and provoking their mother Angelica Jones into a fight. And a few days ago, at a GCW event, Marie and Angelica had their match. And it ended with Angelica Jones suffering yet another concussion; one that may have permanently ended her career.
Witnessing her mother’s suffering at the hands of her own daughter wasn’t bad enough. Jessica has also had to witness Kimberly Williams feel torn apart emotionally by this entire situation. The Woman Scorned has always had a deep seeded loyalty to Marie Jones. But when Marie decided to target her own mother, that loyalty came into question. Kimberly was distraught and confused as to what she should do and how she should deal with this.
It is for this reason that Jessica feels very disconnected right now from everything else going on around her at the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Jessica feels guilt. Not that any of this was her fault. Jessica and Kim’s sister Marie clearly is at fault for everything here. But Jessica does feel guilty that she didn’t provide enough emotional support or assistance for Kimberly nor did she try to stop Marie from her plans. Jessica nicknamed herself The Archangel because she wanted to fight for justice and fight for what’s right in everything she does, both personally and professionally. But how can she truly call herself The Archangel when she cannot even help her own family?
“GET BACK HERE YOU THIEVING SON OF A BITCH!” This angry shout is unexpected and quickly snaps Lasiewicz out of her trance but the voice is unmistakable; it belongs to “The Woman Scorned” Kimberly Williams. Jessica quickly leaps to her feet and scans the area, looking for her sister. She has been concerned about Kimberly ever since this whole thing began. It hit Williams the hardest and it has shown due to her strange behavior. Granted, strange for Kimberly Williams should be normal but that’s the thing. Kimberly has gone back and forth from her bizarre eccentric personality to being a genuinely vulnerable and very emotional wreck of a human being. Lasiewicz never knows what she’s going to get from one moment to the next when it comes to her half-sister. That in and of itself speaks to Kimberly’s mental state and when she is in this state of mind, she could get into big trouble.
So what kind of trouble has The Woman Scorned gotten herself into now? Jessica walks away from the packing crate and starts looking for her sister. All she has to do is follow the sounds of shouting from down the hall. The Archangel continues down the hall until she is nearly run over by a guy wearing a Pizza Hut uniform carrying a pizza box in one hand and Kimberly’s SCW Lizard Championship title belt in the other.
“What the fu…” before Jessica can finish her sentence she is nearly knocked over again, this time by Kimberly Williams whose face is covered in marinara sauce. But even through the marinara Jessica can tell that Kimberly is pissed. The Woman Scorned is barefoot, wearing torn denim jeans, and a black t-shirt which reads “All Hail The Lizard King” in purple lettering.
“Get back you damned pizza runt!”
Kimberly chases after the pizza guy. It has become clear what happened here. This pizza guy challenged Kim for the Lizard Championship. Was he successful or did he just steal it? That’s another question altogether. But one thing is certain and that’s that Jessica does not want her half-sister to murder this guy. Jessica chases after the pair, hoping she can keep Kimberly from doing something she may regret later.
The pizza guy reaches a door and swings it open wildly, entering the parking garage. Unfortunately for him the door stays open for Kim, which saves her time. The pizza guy stops, opens up the pizza box, and takes out slices of pizza and begins throwing them at Williams. This slows her up just a little, but not enough. So he throws the entire box at her, tripping her up and knocking her off of her feet. The small man starts laughing.
“HaHaHa! You foul smelling turd blossom! You aren’t smart enough for Ricky B Sharp!” He turns and starts to run again.
“Did you just say I smelled like shit?!” Kimberly snarls and resumes her chase. Without having to balance the pizza Ricky B Sharp can get up some more speed. Kimberly though is keeping up rather well. Sharp spots his vehicle, a small sedan with a pizza hut logo on top, nearby. He smirks, thinking he is home free…
...and that is when Jessica Lasiewicz sticks her foot out to trip him up. Sharp falls face first to the concrete parking lot. He scrambles back to his feet but Kimberly quickly catches up and snatches him by his neck and slams him up against the side of his own vehicle.
“Who the hell ordered a fucking pineapple pizza?!”
“Uh…” the pizza guy’s voice trails off and his voice is shaky, full of uncertainty. The Woman Scorned smirks knowingly, nodding her head as her own suspicions are seemingly confirmed.
“I bet no one ordered a pizza. Did they?!”
“The referees?” Ricky says, not sounding very convincing.
“That’s bulls...actually, some of those referees are rather strange. I can see them eating this damn monstrosity that is pineapple pizza. But still, even if someone did legitimately order this pizza, does that give you the right to challenge me...ME OF ALL PEOPLE...for the prestigious Lizard Championship?!”
“You...you did…” Ricky is clearly scared for his own well being as he tries to come up with an excuse for his actions “...you did challenge everyone.”
“I meant WRESTLERS! Not a freaking pizza guy!” Kimberly reaches into her pocket and produces a shank. “I have a half a mind to gut you right here and now you little worm!”
“NO!” He screams loudly, almost sounding like a high pitched squeal. “You can’t! I...I’ll...I’ll sue! I’ll file charges! I’m not a trained wrestler and this is assault!”
“I’ve been to jail once. Do you think I care?” Kimberly says with an evil grin. Jessica looks into her half-sister’s eyes to try and gauge how serious she is about this. Unfortunately it is rather difficult to read Kimberly right now, especially with the state of mind she’s in. She could be bluffing but then again, Kimberly has done this sort of thing before. It’s best to play it safe. Lasiewicz decides to gently pull her sister off of the frightened Ricky.
“Stay back, Kim. I’ll handle this.”
“But…”
“Kim.”
Williams sighs and relents. “Fine.”
Lasiewicz approaches Ricky, who looks on at the pink haired woman with some concern. Jessica casts a glance back at Kimberly and speaks in her native Polish tongue “Zrobić zdjęcie.”
Jessica smiles devilishly as she turns to face Ricky. “Hello, mister….Sharp? Ricky B Sharp? That’s what you said your name was, right?”
“Yes. Thank you for helping me and…” Ricky is silenced when Jessica puts her hand up to his mouth.
“Silence. Listen. What is your job, Mr. Sharp?”
“I am a delivery guy for a local Pizza Hut. But what does…” again Jessica puts a hand up to silence him.
“Silence. Speak when spoken to. Understand?” He nods his head. “Good. So, you are a pizza delivery guy. As a pizza delivery guy you have every right to do your job without being interrupted and especially without being assaulted. If Kimberly here were to slam you against your own vehicle and threaten you with that shank, that would most definitely be assault. Civil charges would be probably, possibly even criminal charges. Am I right?”
“Yes! Yes, of course! But I will not press charges if you just let me leave!” Ricky seemingly is begging at this point. Jessica isn’t done, though. She shakes her head.
“Not yet, Mr. Sharp. Now you are here delivering a pizza...or at least, we’ll assume you are here delivering a pizza and just doing your job...and if that’s the case you should be allowed to do your job. But do you know what my job is and what Kim’s job is? I mean, you should know because you are not stupid. You know where you are.”
Sharp nods his head. “Yeah...some kinda wrestling event.”
“Correct. And Kim and myself we are wrestlers. We wrestle for SCW, MWE, and GCW. Now SCW may not have sanctioned the Lizard Championship but she is proud of it. Proud to the extent that she issued an open challenge to ANYONE within earshot of her challenge. And that includes pizza delivery men. You were within your right to take her down but in doing so you entered her world. And you also forfeited any rights you had as ‘just a simple pizza delivery guy doing his job’. The mere fact that you have the Lizard Championship belt in your possession means YOU assaulted her first. I don’t think you could win in court. As a matter of fact, if I turned a blind eye and let my sister destroy you right here and now, I am fairly certain that the courts would rule in her favor, because YOU entered her world.”
Lasiewicz slowly steps away from Ricky. She reaches out her hand to Kimberly, who then proceeds to place her cell phone in her hand. Jessica proceeds to start pressing a few buttons while still talking to the frightened pizza guy. “So you can take your chance against Kim, take your chance in court knowing that your odds aren’t exactly as good as you think considering the fact that you struck her first. Or you can just return the Lizard Championship to my sister and we can all go our separate ways…” Lasiewicz then shows Ricky a picture that Kimberly had secretly taken using the phone, it is a picture of Ricky standing with drenched khaki pants in a small puddle that one can only assume is his own urine “...and I can also guarantee that this picture of you pissing your pants in fear of Kimberly Williams never sees the light of day.”
Ricky looks back at Kimberly whose evil grin has returned to her face. He knows that this deranged ginger is jumping at the chance to carve him up just like a...well...like a pizza. He looks over at Jessica and realizes both of these women are serious. He sighs and nods his head.
“Yeah...alright…” he holds out the Lizard Title belt, offering it back to Kimberly “...here.”
Kim and Jessica exchange a look. Jessica nods her head and speaks, again in Polish “blokada nadgarstka.”
Kimberly smirks. She takes the Lizard Title belt...but in one swift, fluid motion tosses it to Jessica and then locks an overhead wrist lock in on Ricky B Sharp. The poor pizza guy starts shrieking again. “Aaaaaaaggghhh!!! Let go! Let go!”
“Is that a submission?”
“YES! I GIVE UP!”
Kimberly releases the hold. “Good enough for me! Winner and new LIZARD CHAMPION…” the deranged redhead takes her title belt back from Jessica “...KIMBERLY WILLIAMS!”
“Now leave, if you know what’s good for you.” With that, Jessica turns and walks away. Kimberly Williams follows closely behind, skipping away happily with her Lizard Championship belt in tow. Kimberly quickly catches up to her half-sister and follows her back across the concrete floor of the parking area and then they re-enter the arena through the same doors that Kimberly had just chased the pizza guy through a few minutes earlier.
“Thanks for the help, Jess! With you by my side NO ONE will take the prestigious Lizard Championship away from me!”
Jessica sighs as she turns to face Kimberly. “Prestigious? Even though SCW doesn’t recognize it?”
“SCW doesn’t have to. But The Lizard King does.”
“How the hell do you know that? Have you spoken to Mr. D?”
“Ha!” Kim points at Jessica. “You admit it! Gio is right! Mr. D is the Lizard King!”
“I didn’t say that! I just…” Jessica sighs and nods her head, relenting to Kim’s fantasy “...fine. He’s the Lizard King.”
Kimberly studies the face of her half-sister and can tell based upon the distortion and angst that she is clearly frustrated. The Woman Scorned gently pats Jessica on her head as if she were a sad puppy dog. “Awwww what’s wrong with my sissy? Are you upset because we had to chase down and threaten a pizza delivery guy?”
“I admit I would rather use my talents for something other than keeping that ridiculous championship around your waist.” Jessica smirks. “But then again, I’d do anything for you.”
“Love you too!” Kim embraces Jessica in a tight sisterly hug. Upon breaking the hug Kimberly tilts her head to one side and furrows her brow as she studies her expression intensely.
“You’re still upset about something. Right?”
“It doesn’t matter.” Jessica responds as she turns away from The Woman Scorned and begins to walk away. She approaches the packing crate from earlier. Kimberly doesn’t let this deter her. The reigning (and new?) Lizard Champion follows her half-sister until she finds Jessica sitting again on the crate.
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“I’d rather not.”
“Well then I’ll just hold my breath until you do!” Kimberly takes in a deep breath and begins to hold it. Jessica rolls her eyes. Kimberly continues to try and hold it for as long as she can but she can only go for so long. She lets it out and starts breathing heavy. “Shit! That was tougher than fighting that pizza guy! Lemme try again…”
“No,” Jessica says chuckling “it’s ok, Kim. You’re right, I am upset. Well, not upset really. More worried.”
“Worried about what?”
Jessica points a finger at Kimberly. “I’m worried about you.”
“Worried about moi?” Kimberly expresses a sense of shock and surprise upon hearing this. “You have nothing to worry about, Jess! I am up to the challenge of facing anyone and everyone who may want this Lizard Title!”
Kimberly happens to notice a man in a referee’s shirt walking by. “Hey! Zebra! You wanna piece of this?!”
The referee shakes his head and rushes away quickly. Kim smirks and turns to face Jessica. “See? I’m fine!”
“That’s not what I mean and you know it.” Jessica scoots over to make room for Kimberly on the packing crate. Kimberly approaches and sits down next to Jessica. “You haven’t been acting like yourself lately, Kim. I mean, you always have acted rather strange. For a long time I never really quite understood it. That’s partially why I never did trust you. But working with you it has helped me to finally understand you. You would use the crazy actions as a front to hide your emotional vulnerability. Some think that’s not a healthy way to deal with emotions but hey, who am I to judge? It has worked for you for so long. But lately you have had a harder time keeping up the appearance of Crazy Kim.”
Jessica points into Kimberly’s eyes. “I saw the passion in those eyes. I also saw your eyes a few days ago when our mother suffered that concussion. You were angry....passionately angry about what Marie did.”
“Is that bad?” Kimberly asks quietly.
“No, it doesn’t have to be. Most people have no problem expressing their passion and their emotions. Your way of dealing with the emotions and the passion is hiding it, keeping it bottled up and away from the public.”
“I never wanted them to use it against me.”
“And that’s fine. But you’re starting to lose control, Kim. You’re starting to express yourself whether you want to or not.”
“What are you saying, Jess?”
“I’m just saying that this isn’t you. And because this isn’t ‘normal’ for you, I am concerned.”
Kimberly sighs deeply and nods her head. “Yeah...well, I’ll handle it someway. I always do.”
Jessica wraps an arm around her sister’s shoulder. “But you don’t have to handle it alone. Remember that you have a family now. I haven’t always been there for you in the past and for that I’m sorry, but I am here for you now. We are a team, not just as Vengeance but as sisters. And sisters look out for one another.”
“Thanks, Jess...I appreciate that…but you don’t need to worry about me so damn much. I know I haven’t been myself lately, but that’s just because I’m working through some stuff. I’ll deal with it.”
“We’ll deal with it.” Jessica remarks, correcting her eccentric half-sister. “We’re a team.”
“Exactly. We’ll take care of it. But there is something you should know.”
Lasiewicz can tell based on the tone of Kimberly’s voice that something is amiss. The Polish native furrows her brow out of curiosity. “What is it?”
“Sorinah…”
“What about her?” Jessica’s face grows far more grave, more serious, upon the mention of the name of Sorinah Floreschu, the Romanian woman who used to manage her career once upon a time. Jessica watches Kimberly’s expression. Kimberly sighs deeply.
“We’ve been in contact. Very close contact, actually.”
“Wait, what?! What do you mean by ‘very close’?! What has she been doing to you?”
“Nothing bad if that’s what you’re worried about. She has been helping me out here and there with some minor things, helping my career in small ways like arranging for travel and places to stay at the various stops from city to city where we wrestle. She’s also been providing some helpful advice here and there. She’s almost like an advisor.”
Lasiewicz shakes her head out of frustration. The Archangel has a history with Sorinah, one that did not end well. She does not trust Sorinah and the fact that Kimberly seems willing to is bothering her. “That’s how it all starts, Kim. She acts like she’s there to help, she acts like she’s there to advise you, but then she shows her true colors. She’s a sociopath. She nearly ruined my life and she will ruin yours if you aren’t careful.”
“You talk as if I don’t know who she is…”
“You never dealt with her before. But I have.”
“You’re right, I haven’t dealt with her before, but I have dealt with her sister. Emma Floreschu raised me. And yeah, Emma Floreschu DID ruin my life. Sorinah herself admits that and she feels guilty over what her sister did. She feels guilty that she couldn’t stop Emma from trying to ruin me….and by extension ruining our family. That’s why she’s helping me, Jess. She’s trying to make up for the sins of her sister.”
Lasiewicz ponders this for a moment. It seems hard to believe. Jessica, for one, doesn’t believe, but based upon the look on Kimberly’s face, she can tell that Kimberly does believe. Kimberly is buying whatever it is that Sorinah is selling. The Archangel sighs deeply and shakes her head.
“And you believe her?”
“Yes, yes I do believe her.”
“I think you’re making a big mistake. She’s a con artist, Kim.”
“Maybe she is, maybe she isn’t. But why shouldn’t I give her a chance? She didn’t ruin my life, Emma did. And so what if she herself has done bad things in the past? Everyone deserves a second chance. I know that better than anyone else and that’s why I’m willing to listen to her. And she also wants to help you. She wants to make up for what she did to you by helping you in the same way she’s helping me.”
Jessica immediately shakes her head. “She has an agenda, Kim. I don’t care what she’s told you or how sincere she may seem, but I know her and I know she has an agenda. You just don’t know what it is.”
“Yeah? Well neither will you until you hear her out.”
Lasiewicz arches a brow. “Are you suggesting I come visit her?”
“Yes. That’s all she wants. She wants a chance to speak with you. She wants you to hear her out. No strings attached.”
“No strings?”
“None.” Kimberly says, shaking her head. The Archangel must admit that this offer does sound intriguing. Still, the distrust is there. She does not trust Sorinah Floreschu. She betrayed Jessica and tried to ruin her professional career. She was saved by the actions of her best friend Summer Collins. She may never trust Sorinah again. But for some reason Kimberly does trust this Romanian woman. And Jessica does trust Kimberly. It is a difficult decision for Jessica Lasiewicz but the only answer she has is the safe one.
“I’m sorry, Kim. But right now I can’t. I just can’t find in my heart to even trust that woman again and give her a chance let alone forgive her and let her back into my life.”
“I understand. Forgiving someone who has wronged you is tough. But you forgave me.”
“But that’s different.”
“How so? Look, I’m not asking you to forgive her or even trust her. You can listen to what she has to say and then tell her to shove it up her ass for all I care. All I ask is that you hear her out.”
Jessica shakes her head. “I just can’t. I’m sorry.”
“Will you at least think about it?”
“For you, Kim…” Jessica nods her head “...yes, I’ll think about it.”
“That’s all I ask.”
“But I make no promises. Understood?”
“Yes, ma’am!” Kimberly says, playfully saluting Jessica. The Archangel chuckles.
“At ease, soldier.”