CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Kennedi lay on the ground, Veronica kneeling on the back of her thigh to help her stretch out her legs. Once Veronica stepped back, Kennedi sat up and leaned forward, flattening out her body in a move she'd learned to call the "pancake" when she began tumbling classes as a kid.
"Are you excited?" Veronica asked, looking into one of the locker room's mirrors and trying to flatten out her red hair in the front where it had frizzed. Thankfully, she had hairspray. "I mean, you have a match against Ashley tonight. You gonna pick up where I left off?"
"I didn't ask you to murder the girl, you know." Kennedi continued her stretches then, finishing off with a backbend that she flipped out of. "But, yes, I am excited, and I plan on picking up where you left off."
"She's got to be pissed, though. I mean, first, you took her 'man'." Kennedi and Veronica shared a laugh at Ashley's expense. Edge had told them all of the horror stories while Kennedi was in the hospital. "Then, your best friend kicked her ass for you. I mean, you've got to think about that stuff."
Kennedi brushed herself off and moved to stand next to Veronica in the mirror, adjusting her shorts and fixing the bottom of her shirt. It made an "X" across her back and a V leading down to just the top of her cleavage, but left the rest of her chest to the imagination, as it went down to about three or four inches over her belly button. "I understand that much, I'm not an idiot… I'm just irritated with her, and I know that's gonna get to me during the match."
"I wouldn't worry too much about it," a third voice chimed in. In the doorway stood Edge, with a smile on his face. "I'm sending Veronica out there with you for the night-but first, you have to see the wheel. It wasn't supposed to be one, but it's a Roulette match now."
Kennedi slapped Veronica's hand in a high five and smiled. "Winners. The Roulette is going to side with me, I swear it… well, at least, I hope it is. I should go check that out first." She pulled a jacket and a pair of yoga shorts over her gear and walked with Veronica to the general manager's office, where the man who had originally brought them to the company to meet and get contracts stood, waiting. A cameraman stood, waiting to catch this and broadcast the moment.
"Ah, Kennedi." The crowd cheered as Booker T smiled at the young talent and the camera broadcast to the arena. "It's good to see you again." He held out his hand to shake hers, and she smirked, sharing a laugh with Veronica as she shook his hand. "If you wouldn't mind just spinning the wheel for me? I'd like to see what your match tonight will be against Ashley."
The crowd booed before Kennedi stepped up to the wheel, grabbing one of the spokes and pulling it. The wheel spun quickly, and Kennedi and Booker made small talk as they waited for it to slow down. Then, Kennedi wished she'd never spun at all.
"Oh, no. Booker, you cannot make me do that. Any match but that." Kennedi stepped away from the wheel, shaking her head, as the audience cheered excitedly.
Booker shrugged and put his glasses back on. "The rules are the rules-the wheel has chosen."
Ooh, come and get you some, come and get you some…
"The following is a bra and panties match! Introducing first, being accompanied to the ring by Veronica… Kennedi Korklan!"
Kennedi's theme continued to play as Veronica walked out onto the stage and held up her hands, before bowing down and motioning to Kennedi as she walked out, looking like she was going to die of embarrassment. She wore a pair of yoga pants and a camisole tank top.
"I'm going to kill you, Ronnie," Kennedi shoved her friend down the ramp as they walked. "This is the worst punishment I could possibly have gotten."
"Shut up and enjoy it-they are." Veronica stepped to the side as Kennedi walked up the stairs, shaking her head and frowning as she got into the ring.
The fans were still cheering her wildly as she stood in the middle, arms crossed over her chest. She'd been prepared for an actual match, maybe something good, but instead had gotten something she despised. The bane of her existence. The bra and panties match.
I told you, I told you, I told you, baby…
"Introducing her opponent, being accompanied to the ring by Trish Stratus… Ashley!"
Ashley walked out with Trish by her side, Ashley wearing a plain black t-shirt and a pair of black sweat pants. She wasn't looking much happier with the situation, but it was going to be a good excuse to beat the crap out of Kennedi while she could.
Trish and Veronica exchanged a glare as Kennedi and Ashley circled around the ring, waiting for the match to begin.
"I'm going to kill you for spinning this, man-stealer."
"Save it, Trashley."
The bell rang, and they both dove in, claws out as they began to just attack each other to best of their abilities.
Basic slaps, punches, and other generally painful hits were taken and given in the ring between Ashley and Kennedi, until Ashley went for a clothesline, and Kennedi did a backbend through it, flipping through and turning it into a back-handspring. Ashley turned around just as Kennedi moved her arm back and hit her with an elbow smash as well, taking a page from Torrie Wilson's handbook for a change of pace. Trish noticed this and glared at the young, black-haired Diva.
Ashley held to her jaw and mouth area as she stumbled back, Kennedi turning around and getting a connection with a basic kick to the side of Ashley's head. Ashley fell to the ground, her ear ringing as she tried to roll out, only to see Veronica there, and feel two hands grab her by her sweats, pulling them down to her ankles and then completely over her shoes to reveal her black underwear.
The crowd was cheering now, and Kennedi swung the sweats around over her head a few times before tossing them at Trish.
Ashley got back up to her feet then, rushing forward and shoving Kennedi to the ground. Kennedi's shirt was easy enough to pull over her head, revealing a black and red lace bra, while Kennedi's face flushed the color of a fire truck.
"You're gonna pay for that, Trashley!"
"Bite me, bitch!"
Ashley and Kennedi scooped in once again, grabbing each other by the hair before Kennedi got a running start and threw Ashley to the ground and gave her a knee to the temple. From there, she grabbed the bottom of Ashley's t-shirt and yanked, hard, so that it went all the way over Ashley's head and revealed the black bra she was wearing underneath.
Veronica grabbed Kennedi's shirt from ringside as Kennedi got out of the ring, Trish sliding in and pointing at the girls leaving. She started to threaten them as they shrugged and walked away, Kennedi victorious in a bra and panties match. That left DEAR marked up, three losses.
Later that night, the ring was left illuminated by one circle of lights as Jazz led the girls down to it once again. The girls lined up at the edge of the ring and Jazz stood in front of them, pacing back and forth, while Edge took a seat behind her in a black steel chair.
"High kicks, bimbos! On my mark. One!"
"Hut!" The girls screamed in unison as they did these kicks.
"Two!"
"Hut!"
"Those aren't high kicks, Blondie, those are I-don't-feel-like-trying kicks! Twenty push-ups and ten crunches, now." As Kelly began to move, Jazz looked between the other girls. "I meant everyone. All of you, go. Afterwards, go work on stretches. This is a long night ahead of us."
"Was I right or was I right?" Edge asked after Jazz had come to stand next to him, and the girls had begun their pushups.
"You were absolutely right. What the hell happened to the division since I was released… I'm disappointed in the world. Hey, what happened to Beth?"
"Beth's still out on her injury leave. She got hurt, extremely, during the second attack, and the doctors have her practically on house arrest. I've only gotten through to her once about coming back, and she had to get off the phone." Michelle finished first and moved near them, beginning to stretch as she listened to their conversation. Jazz continued, regardless. "Michelle was put in a sling for a while. Layla's still out on an immobilizing brace, but she's been coming to the shows to make sure she's kept up. Her physical therapy's been working out well."
Michelle went down into the splits, all the way to the floor, and Jazz nodded a bit as she did this. "I see… what about the other Divas? Weren't there any good ones?"
"Beth was on top, and then Melina, Michelle, and Layla got hurt pretty badly. Layla should be cleared by SummerSlam, at least to take off the brace, but Melina's not expected to come back for a while. Eve just got cleared last week."
"I thought there were more than that."
"Aksana and Maryse left, but that's it."
"Pathetic." Jazz's eyes were scanning the room, and she let out a groan as she saw something that she had to fix. "Speaking of pathetic. I've got to go do this. Blondie! Blonde bimbo in the yoga gear!" Kelly turned around to face Jazz, stepping away as Jazz continued to walk toward her though they were feet apart. "Get yourself together. Are you stretching?"
"N-No…"
"Are you… I don't know... wrestling."
"No."
"Then what the hell do you think you're doing here?! Do you want to get your ass kicked by DEAR?! Do you want your career to end?! At this point, I think you're as bad as Gail Kim, working with them, but I know they'd never stoop that low!" Jazz shoved Kelly back, and she fell to the floor, crawling back as Jazz kneeled in front of her. "What's your problem, huh, Blondie? I've tried to kick some sense into you, slap it into you, punch it into you. I've beaten you in countless matches. I've knocked sense into you enough times that you should get it by now. Is there anything you want to say to me to fix this for yourself before I have to slap you around again?!"
Kelly's mouth opened, and Jazz raised her eyebrows, waiting for something. However, Kelly said nothing, and shook her head. "No, ma'am."
"Then get up off your ass, you pathetic waste of space on the roster, and get your ass in the ring."
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