January 29, 2012
Penny stood, staring, not really seeing. Phil had his arm around her, supporting her, comforting her. Tate's mom stood next to them. She noticed the tears in Penny's eyes, and she reached over, taking her hand and holding it tightly. They watched as the coffin was slowly lowered into the ground. The priest spoke, but Penny didn't hear him, all she could focus on was Tate.
When it was over, and people started to turn away, Penny hugged the elderly woman standing next to her. "I'm so sorry," she whispered, her voice hoarse.
"Don't worry yourself, it's not your fault. No one here blames you."
"But, if it wasn't for me, he wouldn't of even been there."
Bianca Rossi shook her head, "We're all sad, it's a miserable day. But you shouldn't beat yourself up for it. You had no control over the situation." She paused, "Why don't you and your brother come back to our house. Many our friends have brought us food, you should join us for dinner."
Penny glanced up at Phil, then nodded, "We'll be there." She smiled weakly, and Bianca turned to walk away with her husband.
Penny turned to look at Tate's grave one more time. She took a deep breath and walked over to the head of the grave. There wasn't a headstone yet, so she marked the spot with the blood red rose she'd been holding.
She stood up and Phil wrapped his arms around her, "I'm sorry," he whispered. "You shouldn't have to feel this way. You're my baby sister, I'm supposed to protect you."
The tears welled up in Penny's eyes again, "You can't protect me from everything."
"I can try."
January 30, 2012
Penny was curled up in a ball asleep on the couch in the breakroom, her head rested on Phil's thigh. Phil's head was tilted back against the top of the couch, asleep as well. They had gotten up early that morning to fly back to the US from Italy, and neither of them had slept well the night before. Now they had RAW.
The door opened, then closed, stirring Phil from his light, unrestful sleep. He blinked a few times, and looked over at Drew, who had just walked in. Drew glanced at Penny, then Phil, "How is she?" he asked.
Phil shrugged, "Physically, she's okay, but she keeps berating herself for what happened. Everyone has tried to tell her it's not her fault, but she doesn't listen." Phil paused. "She seems fine, but she has these moments where she'll stop and just start crying."
Drew shook his head solemnly. "Is she still going to wrestle tonight?"
Phil shrugged, "We haven't talked about it."
The door opened again, John Laurinaitis walked in.
"Penny!" he said, loud enough for her to jerk awake. Stunned for a moment, she looked around, blinking before finally looking at Laurinaitis. "We need to talk about your match tonight. Or should I say, the match you're not having. I'm postponing it until further notice."
She stood up, a little groggy at first. "You can't do that."
"I can. In case you've forgotten, you spent most of this past week in the hospital. You are in no condition to wrestle."
"I am! The doctors cleared me for it. I didn't have a concussion or any major injuries. I deserve this match, you can't take it from me."
Laurinaitis sighed, "What if you get sent back to the hospital? You're really willing to risk your health for a belt?"
"Are you stupid? We all risk our health every night. I am wrestling Beth tonight, whether you like it or not, and I will win!"
1 hour, 30 minutes later
Beth had just hit Penny with the Glam Slam. She was pinned, she was done. She heard the referee lower himself to start the count. His hand came down, "1..."
That's when it started, "Penny!...Penny!...Penny!...Penny!..."
"2..."
She seen Tate's face in her mind, smiling at her. Encouraging her. The crowd kept chanting. She opened her eyes, the ref's hand was coming down. With all the strength she had, she brought her shoulders up, breaking out of the pin, the ref stood up. Beth followed, pissed that he hadn't finished the three count.
Penny got to her feet, and nailed Beth with a reverse bulldog, bringing her back into the match. She grabbed Beth, again, by the head, and delivered a kneeling face buster. She kept going, move after move. Pushing herself, driving herself to win. She had to. If she didn't, then everything that had happened would be for nothing. She finally finished it off with the Sunset Flip Powerbomb, pinning Beth.
She listened to the roar of the crowd, it was all she heard, "1...2..." The ref was about to call it. It was almost over. Penny was going to be the new Diva's Champion.
Beth kicked out.
Slightly infuriated, Penny got to her feet, dragging Beth with her. She nailed a frontflip pile driver, pinned her again. She closed her eyes, she blocked out the sound. The bell rang. The crowd cheered even louder, "The winner of this match, and the new Divas Champion, Penny Brooks!"
She stood, "Bad Reputation" blared through the arena as the belt was handed to her, and her arm was raised. She grinned as the tears began to fall from her eyes. She climbed the turnbuckle, posing for the world, the belt held proudly above her head. She brought it down, holding it in one hand, she looked to the sky, "This one's for you, Tate!" she shouted.
Penny jumped down. The smile still on her face as the tears streaked her face. She high-fived and hugged fans on her way back up the ramp. Everyone smiled and patted her on the back, randomly throwing out "Congratulations!" and "I love you, Penny!"
When she slipped behind the curtain, she was bombarded by Phil and all her friends. They were all smiling, congratulating her. Their words were lost to her ears. Drew picked her up, hugging her, spinning her around. "You were great out there!" he told her.
"Where did those moves come from?" asked Nikki, "I've never seen you do those things."
She shrugged.
Phil grinned, "That's my baby sister." He wiped the tears from her face. "You're amazing!"
"The best in the world," she joked.