Not Losing Focus

[Tommy Knox]

///Not Losing Focus\\\
Chapter XXV

"...a storm is about to rip through them and tear their whole world apart..."
- Wallace -

Thursday 8:11 PM [April 11th, 2013]
Long Beach, California

We find ourselves at the gym this evening, Southside Johnny's. Inside, business is good. We're at about half capacity and the place is running on eight cylinders. People line up the floor, scattered in packs with a single purpose in mind. Everyone is here to better themselves. That's where Knoxville comes in.

Across the gym, a ring is set up for sparring. It looks rather old, nothing fancy. It's just your basic ring, four corners and ropes. On the inside, Knoxville wrestles with an unknown man, about twice his size. The two tie up and Knoxville fights with all of his strength to take the big man down. As the man over powers Knoxville, he loses his footing only to be taken advantage of. Knoxville then sweeps his feet out from under him and flips him over with a takedown.

A familiar face then walks through a crowd of people and towards the ring. Knoxville and the unknown wrestler slowly climb to their feet. The man outside the ring then walks to the apron and smacks his hand a couple of times grabbing their attention.

"Nice move." man says.

Knoxville looks over to the apron only to bring a smile to his face. "Rodrigo, what the hell are you doin' here?"

"You've been a hard man to get with." Rodrigo says as he climbs the apron and enters the ring.

Knoxville then reaches out and the two shake hands. "I've been all over the place with APW."

Rodrigo laughs to himself for a moment before replying. "I've seen you all over the television. I'm sure your new alliances haven't kept you busy as well."

"What do you mean?" Knoxville asks.

"You know what I mean, the bikers." Rodrigo says.

Knoxville thinks for a minute before replying. "They're my family now."

"If you're going to succeed this time around, you need to focus on wrestling and nothing else." Rodrigo then walks to the corner and leans against the turnbuckle.

"I am focused on wrestlin'. My new friends handle another side of business for me. We have this worked out so that I can committ fully to my wrestlin'." Knoxville says with a look of doubt written across his face.

"That's neither here nor there. You have a minute to talk?" Rodrigo asks.

"Actually, I would like nothin' more than to catch up with you, brother." Knoxville nods at the other wrestler as he walks towards Rodrigo. "Come on, lets go to the office."

The two then exit the ring, leaving the unknown wrestler behind. Knoxville puts his arm around Rodrigo's neck as the two approach the office. Once inside, Knoxville sits behind the desk and Rodrigo across from him. Knoxville then reaches into the small fridge beside the desk and pulls out two bottled waters and hands one across the table to Rodrigo.

"So, how have you been?" Knoxville asks Rodrigo as he takes a drink from his bottle.

Before answering, Rodrigo opens his water and takes a drink as well. "I've been good, Thomas."

Knoxville nods his head briefly. "Well, that's good. I've missed havin' you around."

"Really? You didn't seem to give a damn a couple of years back when you left me high and dry for that New York big shot." Rodrigo says.

"That was a mistake. I should have never left your guidance. When Salieri wants something he doesn't let go once he has his hands around it. They used me up and spit me out. I regret makin' that move to this day." Knoxville says with a tone of regret in his voice.

"I told you that he was only interested in money, that he didn't care about you." Rodrigo says as he stares Knoxville in the eyes.

"What can I say? You were right. Is there any chance of you takin' me under your wing again? Knoxville asks.

Rodrigo thinks for a brief moment before answering. "I don't know. I've heard rumors around town that you've gotten yourself mixed up with the Nomads. If you're running with them, where does that leave time for an old man like myself to train you for competition in the ring?"

Knoxville see's his point as he considers everything in his mind. "The club is helpin' me with my herbal business back here. I need protection to look over the business while I'm on the road with APW. That's the understandin' between the both of us until the day comes that I can no longer wrestle. I don't see that day comin' any time soon. When it does, there will be a home for me here with my brothers in arms. For now, all I can do is prepare myself one match at a time. You never know what the future holds."

"You're still a dumb kid! The future holds bright things for your wrestling future. You just need guidance and support through the tough times." Rodrigo says.

Knoxville laughs to himself as he takes a drink of water. "Tough times? Those days are behind me. I've made quite an impact since I've returned to APW."

Rodrigo shakes his head in disagreement. "If you don't consider losing a North American championship match tough times then you're obviously blind."

"Seriously?" Knoxville asks as he stares across the table at Rodrigo in silence. "The Guv'nors day is comin'. If it wasn't for outside interference then maybe I could have focused on him solely. Those cunts days are comin' as well. I don't care who it is on the roster. When it comes to that title, I am still the number one contender. I don't care if you're Robina Hood, Warren Peace, Yarmouth or any of these other new scrubs on the block. I'll take on Jake Titan any day of the week, he wants it then he can come and get it. No one but Guv'nor has beaten me, and he needed me gettin' distracted to do so. When someone comes and knocks me off this pedastal then I'll say otherwise. Until then, the fact of the matter is that I'm the only contender for that title on Meltdown that truly deserves it. I'll take on anyone who thinks otherwise."

Rodrigo looks surprised as he sits up in his seat. "That's the fire that I saw inside of you from the first time we met. I can guide you to the top, kid. It's goin' to require a change of lifestyle though.'

Knoxville doesn't seem to like what he's hearing. "A change of lifestyle? I am what defines the American Highlife. There's nothin' wrong with the life that I live. No matter what the obstable, I will prevail. There's not a single person on Meltdown who can slow me down on my rise to the top. Monday night was just a little bump in the road. I'll get back in the ring with that son of a bitch and prove the world wrong. It's what I've been doin' every since I stepped up in this business."

"I'm talking about your lifestyle outside of wrestling." Rodrigo says.

"It is what it is. I took an oath and have pledged my allegiance to the club. They'll be here for me when I need them and I will be there for them. We're brothers. I can't turn my back to them now that you've come along. If you want to train me, say so. We can do this with my affiliations to the club. If anything, bein' a member of the club pushes me even harder to succeed." Knoxville says.

Before answering, Rodrigo pauses to let everything sink in. "If you promise to give me all of your attention when it comes to wrestling then I'll help you. I won't be able to travel out of the country with you but I will be able to travel some in the states. I want you back here no later than two days after each event and at least two to three days of training each week. I don't want any excuses or stories. We train in the mornings. You can play with your biker buddies afterwards."

A grin comes to Knoxville's face as he nods his head. "Agreed."

"Good! Now get your ass back out there and climb in that ring. We need to find you a new sparring partner. Just because someone is big doesn't mean squat. You can take that guy any day of the week. Lets find you some real competition to get your ass into gear!

The two then get up and leave the office as the scene slowly fades to black.

Sunday 1:22 PM [April 14th, 2013]
Los Angeles, California

The streets are packed full of cars and road rage, your typical Los Angeles street. Outside of Los Angeles International Airport is where we find ourselves. You can see the smog in the air as it lingers over the filthy city. A black van sits in traffic headed towards the airport. Inside, you guess it, Knoxville sits in the passenger seat with Wallace driving.

As the two sit, waiting, Knoxville takes a few hits from his glass pipe and relaxes. Wallace on the other hand, you can see the annoyance in his eyes as he stares at the ass end of the car in front of him.

"You can take a cab back! I'm not coming to get your ass." Wallace says with anger in his voice.

Knoxville takes another puff and lets the smoke clear his mind before answering. "That's fucked up, dude. I thought we were brothers."

"We are, dumbass. You shouldn't want to put a fellow brother through this mess. It's fucked up on your end." Wallace says as he pulls a cigarette from Knoxville's pack resting on the dashboard.

"You offered to drive me, remember?" Knoxville says with a grin on his face.

"Shut up! That's not the point asshole!" Wallace yells as sweat beads up on his forehead.

"No worries, bro. Just get me to the aiport and it's on. Once I board that plane, it's nothin' but smooth sailin' ahead of me. Once I get down to Peru, it's fuckin' game time! I've been bustin' my ass with Gooch to earn this tag team title match. Last week I let the North American title slip through my hands. I'm not about to let this fall from my grasp as well. I'm claimin' at least one of these mother fuckin' titles!" Knoxville takes one last hit from the pipe before cashing it.

Wallace looks over at him as those last words roll off his tongue. "You better. We're still a little upset that you let that piece of shit retain that title that belngs around the waist of an American."

"In all honesty, this opportunity with the tag team championships presented itself first. This is where my focus has been over the last few weeks. Gooch and I fought our way to Rasslemania to get a chance to become the number one contender. Well, we showed those boys at NBK how we do it in the south and snatched that contendership out from under them. A couple weeks back, the North American title came into play. I'll worry about that after this gets wrapped up. Dyin' Breed is on the agenda, there's no gettin' around it. It's time to show those bastards who the best tag team in APW is and bring half of those straps back to Meltdown!" Knoxville says as he pulls out a cigarette himself and places it between his lips.

"I'm glad to see that your loss last week hasn't affected your mind set." Wallace says and he extends his arm towards Knoxville with the lighter.

Knoxville grabs it from his hands and strikes the roller, igniting a flame and burining the tip of his cigarette. "I can't let things like that slow me down. Especially when I have separate gold on the line. The North American championship is done and over with, for now. After Monday night, I'll worry about that once more. For now, it's old news, brother."

Wallace stares ahead at the traffic as he replies. "I just hope your partner is ready. I know you've been busting your ass all week with your new trainer and that's all good. You haven't climbed in the ring with Gooch since Rasslemania. I just hope the chemistry is still there."

"It will be. We've never crossed paths before we were first teamed together and from the start, we clicked. There's a natural chemistry and respect between us two and I'm feelin' pretty confident about this match. Actually, I've been lookin' forward to it since Rasslemania. I know Titan has been runnin' off at the mouth about me and his time will come. I want nothin' more than to hold those straps and knock him down a notch or two back to the depths of sorrow." Knoxville says as he takes a slow drag from his cigarette.

"I wouldn't worry too much about that chump. You can worry about him later. You need to focus on the champions and it sure as fuck isn't NBK." Wallace then takes a drag himself as the frustration from the traffic builds inside of him.

"Dyin' Breed doesn't scare me one bit. I've been waitin' for this moment and the time has finally come. Hopkins and Bailey have no clue what it means to step in the ring with the American Highlife. It's goin' to be fun takin' those belts and leavin' the leftovers for Kash to clean up." Knoxville then takes another drag and slowly exhales as he reaches for his bottle of soda.

Wallace grabs his as well and takes a drink to calm his nerves. "Kash? What the fuck does he have to do with anything?"

Knoxville chuckles to himself for a moment before answering. Nothin' really. Him and Bailey both have their dicks out to see who's biggest. Either way, they can play in the closet together. I'm comin' for gold and leavin' them all in my rear view. It's only a matter of time before Kash and I meet again in the ring. What side we stand from each other is a mystery, anything can happen. If I have that strap though, I can pretty much bet that he'll come and try to take it. If he was smart, he would have aligned himself with me from the start and then it could be him and I fightin' for the gold. What does he know?"

"Fuck that! You got this far with Gooch, it's time to see it through and reap the rewards. Those two bit Dying Inbred fucks have no idea that a storm is about to rip through them and tear their whole world apart." Wallace yells as he takes another drag from his cigarette to calm his nerves.

"Damn, I hear you bro and you can bet your ass that's exactly about to happen. They've only held the titles this last time since Rasslemania. I just hope they haven't grown too attached because at the end of the day, it's goin' to be me puttin' them both out for the count and takin' what belongs to me. Gooch has been on this wild ride with me and I know he's not ready to see all this hard work end with nothin' to show for it. There's alot more than just gold on the line Monday night. There's a shit ton of respect there to be earned. It isn't just given, not by me anyway. I work hard for everything that I have and I'm not afraid to sacrifice my body to get what I want. My wounds will heal. My ego though, now that's another story." Knoxville takes another drink from his soda and he leans his head out of the window only to feel the gentle breeze slap him in the face.

Wallace drives forward only to slam on the brake as the car ahead of him comes to a complete stop. "Goddamnit!!!" He yells.

Knoxville cracks a smile as he looks over at Wallace getting more and more frustrated. "Calm down, brother. We're almost there. It couldn't come soon enough either. Since Rasslemania, those straps have been runnin' through my mind nonstop. This isn't my first time I've tasted tag gold. A Few years back Kash and I held the tag straps in WCF until I left him high and dry when my debts came knockin'. Those days are behind me now. My slate is clean with New York and I can focus solely on winnin' those titles and defendin' them with my life. I let a lot of people down when I bailed on Kash a few years back. I let myself down. It's time to make it up to everyone, especially myself and prove that I am a fight, a champion, a warrior."

"You better do something because fuck this shit. I'm getting you to that airport!" Wallace then slams on the gas pedal and pulls the van to the shoulder and begins passing cars, leaving them behind.

"Holy shit, bro! I didn't realize that I was gettin' on your nerves so bad." Knoxville says.

Wallace laughs as excitement rushes through his viens. "It's not you man. I'm just tired of hearing you talk about winning those titles. I'm getting you there faster so it can become a reality. Then you can bore me with talks about defending those titles."

"I hear you, asshole. I know I may talk a big game but you and I both know that I have no problem backin' it up. I'm not like those punks in Dyin' Breed. I don't just talk a big game and throw around a lot of flash and expect the world to see me as a great wrestler. I let my hands to the talkin' for me. I don't let my mouth write checks that my ass can't cash, you know that. I just hope those boys in Dyin' Breed don't talk a big game and come up short. I hate when people let their bulldog mouths overload their puppy dog asses. That's all I see when I look at Dyin' Breed. Puppies, bitches if you will. It's time to take out the trash and bring those straps home to the table. Get me to the airport, Alfred!!!" Knoxville screams as he climbs half way out of the window.

Wallace speeds by all the cars sitting in traffic with a smile on his face. Knoxville continues to hang out of the window with the wind beating on his face. The two enjoy themselves, headed towards the airport as the scene slowly fades to black.