A/N: Hey guys, White here with a special tribute one-shot. After months of speculation, Punk has officially retired due to years of knee troubles and a tumor discovered on his brain. At 35, Punk is finished, but the memories will remain forever! Thank you Punk!
June 1, 2014 – Payback 2014, Chicago, Illinois
The Rosemont, Illinois crowd was sold out to the rafters in the Allstate Arena, a sign that tonights Payback pay per view was well-recieved and entertaining. The Paige VS Alicia match for the Divas Championship just ended and cooled the crowd off and they were looking forward to the main event match of The Shield VS Evolution in a no holds barred six man tag team match...but little did they know that the WWE had one more moment planned especially for them, and this had nothing to do with a match.
Then, much to the delight of the crowd, a familiar opening guitar riff played..
The sound of the crowd battled the sound of Cult Of Personality over which was louder. However despite their enthusiastic cheering they were all paying close attention to the stage, hoping to see their hometown hero, their hometown son, CM Punk.
Much to their joy, Punk did come out, but something seemed off about him..he looked noticably weaker.
CM Punk had a microphone in one hand, and to the added delight of the Rosemont crowd AJ's hand in the other. This was a treat for them, seeing two of some of the most popular WWE stars in recent years as they became unglued with cheers, applause, and bows. Punk was gone from the WWE for six months and they were happy to see him and AJ back before their eyes but there was something off about Punk...he looked weaker and more tired, even a little smaller.
"It hurts so much to do this to them baby...so much.." Punk whispered to his fiancee.
"I know but they deserve to see you one last time." AJ whispered back in her soon-to-be husband's ear through the booming "CM Punk" chants.
"Your right baby..let's do this." Punk murmured softly. While AJ managed to get in the ring with energy and vigor, Punk seemed tired and weak in his motions.
"CM PUNK! CM PUNK! CM PUNK!" the fans cheered in anticipation, wondering just what the Straightedge superstar was going to say.
"Guys, its great to see you all again..after so long." Punk began taking a short breath in between. "I left the WWE back in January for health reasons, and I thought that if I took time off, I'd be okay in a few months. Sadly...that's not the case everybody.." Punk answered, giving the WWE Universe a rare sight - CM Punk tearing up.
AJ couldn't just stand idly by and watch this, she hugged him from the side, her head resting on Punk's chest to show how much this hurt her as well. The fans hushed among themselves, hanging on to his every word.
"Over the years I've wrestled with a skull fracture, my knees are completely shot from years of using the GTS, sometimes I could barely walk due to the insane pain in my knees not to mention my balance can be horrible, my back is almost always hurting these days. But there's one major reason why I'm here. Due to the skull fracture, I developed...a-a growth on my brain...and...I-I wrestled with it for 3 years, 2011 to 2014...t-the b-best 3 y-years of my life.." Punk continued, now visibly crying, much to the sorrow and sympathy of his hometown fans.
AJ looked up at her fiance with tears in her eyes. He was opening his heart to the crowd and for the first time ever she saw him actually cry. Phil's proud, confident, demeanor replaced by honest sorrow in every word. Punk's speech alone made some fans gasp and cry themselves, they never knew their beloved superstar was going through so much. Not just the injuries but a tumor on top of that.
"It's b-because of this, that this is the l-last time you guys will see me as an actively contracted w-wrestler of WWE. Because of this tumor, I'm forced to do the one thing I didn't want to do for another year. I'm s-s-so sorry guys, but CM Punk, your hero, must officially retire from professional wrestling."
And you could've heard a pin drop in the entire Allstate Arena. Did the fans really hear that right? Was CM Punk really retiring from wrestling? Looks of fans yelling out their disbelief and the sight of their jaws dropping from the sheer shock of the message told it all. While they believed him wholeheartedly this didn't make this bombshell any easier to take.
"My doctors have told me that the tumor is thankfully treatable, but unfortunately, my body is like WWE Hall Of Famer Edge's. I can no longer safely perform for all of you without risking permanent paralysis or death. Now...as my last request as a WWE Superstar, can Daniel Bryan please come out with the WWE Championship title please?" Punk requested.
Punk didn't have to wait long as "Flight of The Valkyries" played, signalling the arrival of the reigning WWE Heavyweight Champion. Daniel came out carrying with a heavy heart with the WWE Championship on his shoulder as he walked down the ramp. The fact that he wasn't bouncing down the ramp to the ring, channeling "YES" chants, and the fact that his eyes were shining with tears was a sign of the seriousness of the matter.
Punk smiled tearfully at his longtime friend.
Daniel smiled back, tears running from his eyes as well while handing the WWE Championship to Punk as soon as his music faded. "You were a damn good champion Phil. We'll miss you." Daniel mouthed.
Punk took the title in his hands, dropped to his knees, and kissed it one last time before his eyes misted over with tears.
Meanwhile AJ asked for a spare microphone from the timekeeper while wiping her eyes clean of tears and once she had the microphone she began to speak.
"Wait!...It's not all bad," AJ said, easily capturing the attention of the fans with her words. "While CM Punk was away from the WWE...we became closer than ever. Not only are we getting married soon..but we started a family together!"
"Although I'm done in the ring, I'll still pop by occasionally to see you guys. But for now, it's time to say goodbye. Thank you guys for everything these past 8 years. I love you all and I will never forget you. You guys made this crazy kid from Chicago the happiest man in the world, so thank you. Thank you very much." Punk smiled, posing with the WWE Championship one last time, while symbolically waving goodbye.
Chants of "Thank you Punk!" filled the air as JBL, Jerry Lawler, and Michael Cole each gave standing ovations while Cult of Personality played in rememberance for the great CM Punk.
"CM Punk will forever go down in history as one of the most controversial WWE Superstars ever!" King declared, showing respect to the Chicagoan.
"We just heard the final pipe bomb of Punk's career and everybody in this crowd including me and my broadcast partners are giving him the standing ovation and respect he really deserves!" Cole said as the camera panned over to the fans in the crowd before moving to see Punk, AJ, and Daniel leaving the ring.
Punk one last time, dropped the mic in his classic pipebomb style.
That made the crowd pop with regular cheers for a moment. They were going to miss seeing Punk wrestle but at least his return gave them closure and peace. They no longer had to worry and wonder about their beloved superstar, they could be at peace knowing he was retired and building his own life as well as focusing on his own health.
They no longer had to speculate about Punk.
Punk gave his fans one last wave before disappearing behind the curtain for the final time with his loving fiancee AJ Lee.
"THANK YOU PUNK! THANK YOU PUNK! THANK YOU PUNK! THANK YOU PUNK!" came the chants of the Rosemont crowd. They were so focused on Punk that they forgot they had a main event to watch but it was going to be hard to put their focus on The Shield VS Evolution match coming up next since they found out that such an iconic superstar was formally retiring from competition. However they knew this wouldn't be the last time they would see him, Punk loved this business too much.
And as far as these people were concerned Punk will forever be The Best In The World.
The End!