A/N: Another attempt by me at a PR/SL crossover. The other one was taken down, sad to say. That was a project I should never have undertaken. This short story revolves around WWE Survivor Series at Madison Square Garden and the return of my favorite pro wrestler of all time, The Rock.
A/N 2: It's a Power Rangers/SL/wrestling crossover. What happens when the Power Rangers, Suite Life television series and the return of the Rock collide?
Chapter 3 – Survivor Series Sunday
Sunday, November 20
11:30 a.m. EST
The Plaza Hotel, New York City
After a long night of fun (but not to the point where the group was disturbing the peace), the group of 40 had drifted off to sleep throughout the hotel. The group had also been told to stay away from Hayley until the morning.
It had been a bad month sports wise for the redhead scientist as Oklahoma had lost twice to take them out of college football's national title chase, the Rangers had lost in the World Series and even Stanford had lost to Oregon in football (which Carlos and Cassie had constantly reminded her of).
By then, though, everyone had cooled off and the 40 who had gathered for Survivor Series that night were currently having a very nice brunch at the Palm Restaurant at the Plaza in New York City.
"So is this the first time you guys have ever been to Madison Square Garden?" Maya said as she took a bite of her French toast and looked at the 30 or so who had come three time zones east for Survivor Series.
"Yeah, and for most of us it's the first time we've ever been to New York City," Rocky said. "Although, I went to culinary school here in New York after I got out of UCLA and I remember going to a few events at the Garden including WWE house shows. Those were a lot of fun. The one guy who knows New York better than any of us isn't here."
"Who is that?" Bailey said.
"Our friend Ernie, who runs a Juice Bar back in Angel Grove," Adam said from a few seats down. "Ernie is from New York and graduated from Syracuse but couldn't get off work."
"I went to school at Cornell and used to spend a lot of time here," Anton Mercer said. "In the summer, a lot of the jobs were in New York and I had an internship or two here while I was in school. I used to go to the old Garden for concerts."
"It's an amazing historical place," Maya said. "I wish I could have been old enough to see the Knicks run in 1994. I was only seven then and didn't understand the meaning. I understood a little better when they went in 1999 but they were an underdog and really didn't have a chance against the Spurs."
"The Spurs have, admittedly, had some great teams over the years," Hayley said. "I'm a Thunder fan and have been to see them in a lot of arenas, San Antonio included. San Antonio's the kind of team that has built a nationwide fanbase almost like the Cowboys…they love their Spurs in San Antonio."
"Did you meet Shawn Michaels?" Bailey said. "I admit, the one WWE star I never got to meet that I would have loved to meet is Shawn."
"No, didn't see Shawn Michaels," Hayley said. "I hear he does go to a lot of their games though, but I haven't seen him at the games against the Thunder."
"Speaking of the Cowboys," Cody said. "Hayley, your boy Miles Austin is killing me in fantasy football. My wide receiver corps has taken a HUGE hit because that guy is hurt!"
"Oh Lord, tell me about it," Jason said. "Hayley is pulling her hair out each week because the Cowboys are a walking M.A.S.H unit. I'm feeling the blues on the fantasy front too…I've gone heavy on Houston Texans this year and their injury list is killing me too!"
"That punkass lockout is doing a number on some of my players too," Tommy said. "Of course, my sweet wife over here is reaping the rewards…again…because she had to draft fucking Drew Brees and she's kicking all our butts again in TWO separate leagues!"
"We've been meaning to ask about that," Bailey said. "I sense an undercurrent of jealousy where Kim is concerned. What gives?"
"It involves the NCAA tournament, honey. That's really where the root of this started," Aisha said. "Four of us graduated from UCLA and she graduated from Florida. Her damn team has eliminated UCLA three of the last six years and she's just had a lot of luck go her way. I told the guys I'm done picking UCLA until we beat them."
"I feel the same way about the Jayhawks sometimes," Bailey said. "My heart was crushed when Kansas lost in the NCAA tournament last year…For sure I thought that was going to be their year. I know they won in 2008 which was a great feeling but they sometimes still choke in big game situations."
"I thought they were going to do it, lock and key last year Bailey, honestly I did," Jason said. "I still can't believe they lost. I thought they had all the tools."
"Sometimes being a Kansas fan still feels like being a Red Sox fan, to her," Cody said. "She knows the feeling of heartbreak all too well…KU basketball and the Red Sox have had star crossed histories. The Sox won in 2004 and 2007 and KU won in 2008 but they've had a lot of surprising losses in between."
"She's really funny when Kansas plays Missouri in anything," Zack Martin said. "I think for her that rivalry is like the Red Sox and Yankees for us."
"Missouri people are just…creepy," Bailey said. "I spent most of my childhood near the border and once you cross that border into Missouri it's like you've stepped into a time warp back to the Civil War."
"That's my experience too," Hayley said. "I grew up in Tulsa, about a couple hours away from the Oklahoma-Missouri border and we'd sometimes go to Branson in the summer during my childhood. My experiences with people from Missouri have not been great."
The brunch went on for several more minutes as silence descended on the group until Phil Savitt cleared his throat.
"I should inform everyone that I got a call back from the folks at TD Garden a day or two ago. Some of you already know this and some don't," Phil said.
"And, what did they say?" Elsa said as she raised her eyebrow.
"They do have openings to have a concert for the kids," Phil said. "I think they said something about late June."
The group of eight did fist bumps with whoever they could.
"Late June would be perfect," Cody said. "We'd be out of school, probably back home and we'd love to finally hear you guys perform live. Well, we did at prom but we'd love to hear you in concert."
"We'll call and make reservations," Kim said. "Then you can do whatever you need to do to purchase tickets for the event."
7:00 p.m. that night
Somewhere between the Plaza Hotel and Madison Square Garden
As the group of 40 neared Madison Square Garden in New York for Survivor Series, the big talk amongst the group was autographs and guys who they would want to meet as well as past experiences.
"I'm still surprised you don't try to get Cena's autograph," Bailey said. "I know I don't like him either, but the guy does do good work for charities and all that crap."
"Like I've told you many times, my little love bug, that guy is faux Boston. He claims to be from West Newbury but no TRUE Boston fan would show up in Laker gear in the Garden…ever. I would NEVER get his autograph in a million years," Cody said.
"Speaking of Boston," Tommy said, "I've got a little story I want to tell…I've never told you kids this before."
"Trust me, you guys are going to think this is fascinating," Jason said. "I've known Tommy and his wife for years and there is a side of them you've never seen before."
"My old man was from New England…we traveled a lot when I was a kid but he was from Massachusetts. He was my hero…and Kim still considers him her real father. She had family issues as a kid and she considers my deceased father her real dad," Tommy said. "Anyways, he was a big Red Sox fan, went to many games at Fenway Park and even though I came to love the Dodgers at an early age I got the sense of just how much baseball means in New England."
"I had two sad days in my lifetime. The first was when I broke up with him in 1996 and the other was when Zordon died to save the universe. Both those events hurt not only me, but a lot of the team for a very long time," Kim said.
"Yeah, that's right, we broke up for a couple years. The day that happened was the saddest day for the both of us," Tommy said. "I found out later that she called my dad first and asked about what she should do. She was alone, across the country, with a bitch of a gymnastics coach and a lot of girls who didn't like her."
"I wanted to be the best in the world at gymnastics but it was a cutthroat environment and I wanted the relationship too but having Tommy at the time was hard for both of us," Kim said. "It was his dad who told me what I should do, so we broke up for a while."
"When dad finally explained to me what happened, I finally understood," Tommy said. "He also told me that relationships never last forever but that when we got back together we would learn from what happened in round one and apply that to when we became adults. But you know what he also told me?"
"What's that?" Zack Martin said.
"He told me we'd be back together and that the Red Sox would win the World Series within 10 years. I thought he was nuts," Tommy said. "Then came 2004…I trust Cody, Zack and Bailey remember?"
"How could we forget?" Cody said. "It's the greatest four days in sports history!"
"Hey watch it guys…remember where we are!" Tanya said.
"Oh shut up and let them have their fun," Phil said. "The Yankees haven't recovered since coming from three ahead to choke so I think these guys have that right."
"Thank you Phil," Tommy said. "Anyways, that 2004 ALCS coincided with the first time Kim and I saw each other in seven years. As it turned out I was in San Diego for a teacher's conference and was at a bar watching Game 4 and she was there too."
"I was there with my band," Kim said. By that time the group had reached the Garden and Jason was checking everyone in. "I think by that time it was the seventh inning and the Red Sox were losing and were on the verge of getting swept. Anyways, we talked about his dad and what he'd be thinking if he saw us. We instantly reconnected again."
"My dad called the two of us the reason the Red Sox won…I think he was ridiculous although what happened was a little bit eerie," Tommy said. "It took us exactly two months to propose to each other and we got married in the spring of 2005."
"His dad passed away in the spring of 2006," Kim said, "almost 10 years to the day that I sent that letter which ended my first relationship with Tommy. I still remember being in the hospital room and on his death bed, he told me and Tommy that he knew our secret."
"How did you react?" Bailey said. "I know when we found out about your secret we were a little bit numb that night."
"We just nodded," Tommy said. "We had the inclination he knew but that just confirmed it. His last words were that we made him proud and that we were one of the bright spots in his life…and to carry on as if we were still fighting the good fight."
"I still remember going to the cemetery in Angel Grove after his death and putting a pink rose on his grave as a message that I would always be with him," Kim said.
As the 40 people filed into the Garden for Survivor Series, the kids were numb to what they just heard.
About 10:30 p.m.
Madison Square Garden
"Man, the Rock looks sharp doesn't he?" Kim said as she turned to the kids. It was early in the tag team match, which pitted The Rock and John Cena vs. R-Truth and The Miz.
"Man, you said it!" Bailey said.
"She predicted Rock would surprise some people," Cody said, "and so far that prediction is coming true. He is whooping both Miz and R-Truth butt."
"Yeah but just you wait, John Cena will come in and screw everything up and Rock will have to come back in and clean up the mess," Jason said. "You know how that is."
Shortly thereafter, the whole group was ruefully looking at Jason, who'd had an uncanny ability over the years to predict wrestling matches and how they would go. Cena was getting his butt whipped by this time and the whole group was sick and tired of watching him.
A little while later
The whole Garden was in an uproar as Rock nails the Miz with a spinebuster.
"And here it comes guys!" Tommy said…as both groups knew what was coming next. It was Rock's famed finishing maneuver, the People's Elbow.
Seconds later, Rock hit the People's Elbow and the entire Garden, including the 40 who had gathered, counted one…two…three as the Rock finished off Miz.
But that wasn't all. Seconds later, Rock was face to face with Cena, right in the middle of the ring.
"Watch him Rock Bottom Cena," Kim said. "I'm calling it."
And seconds later…
"YEAH!" the 40 yelled in unison…at the Rock Bottom!
"You guys got your things together?" Jason asked the kids.
"Yeah, we'll be heading out after we get our cars from Marcus and London's apartment," Zack said.
30 minutes later, Central Park
"We thoroughly enjoyed being with you guys. We didn't expect to be spending two days with you but we had a blast," Rocky said.
"I'm glad we could all meet for once," Zack Martin said. "One day, we'll make that trip out to your neck of the woods for a good West Coast tour."
"Good night kids," Tommy said, "and may you have a Happy Holiday season."
The End
