The past four years had been a blur for Scout; she had written a book that became a best seller and had been asked to take a crack at adapting it for the screen once it was optioned to be made into a movie.
Somehow, she became famous. Won awards. Got interviews and autograph requests. The whole kit and kaboodle.
It had shocked her just as much as anyone else.
Scout Coopersmith had lived in Virginia her entire life…she graduated with a useless liberal arts degree and had been laid off more than she cared to admit from any and all writing jobs she ever had. It was during her longest unemployed stretch that she had written her novel, If The Creek Don't Rise, a homespun family drama with romance.
After the movie came out and awards season was done, Scout found herself with nothing but time on her hands. She tried to find inspiration for a sophomore effort, which her publisher was hounding her for drafts of.
Seeking inspiration, she had taken meetings with studios, comic imprints and had made appearances on television here and there as a talking head or a guest on a chat show.
Her agent, Don, always liked to remind Scout that writers don't get a famous as she had, unless you're Stephen King. Something about her had struck a chord with people, which she narrowed down to her warmth and humor.
It hadn't been all sunshine and rainbows, though. Her newfound fame had taken it's toll on her relationship with Sean, her boyfriend for seven years. Instead of being happy for her, he boiled with jealousy over her success and was highly suspicious over every famous man she encountered.
So, when a call came through from Warner Media asking for a meeting in Norfolk hoping to talk to her about a development deal, Scout jumped on it. To her surprise, the meeting was with two people who primarily worked in sports entertainment…wrestling to be exact.
Brandi and Cody Rhodes were hoping to develop an one hour drama about a small town southern girl who dreams of becoming a professional wrestler. Brandi began the meeting with the confession that she loved If The Creek Don't Rise, in both of its forms on film and page. She wanted Scout to have first shot at writing a spec script.
"I'm incredibly flattered, Mrs. Rhodes…but I'm afraid that I have no knowledge of wrestling. Except for what I used to watch with my brother Jeremy when I was a kid."
Her husband leaned forward, his bleached blond hair a direct contradiction to his immaculate three piece suit, "I promise you, we can make this worth your while. I know you probably have tons of offers on the table, especially after the Oscar nomination, but we can get you a consultant or some sort of expert to help you with the technical stuff. The voice is what we want, your voice. Brandi feels very strongly that you are the writer to bring this the warmth and candor the project needs."
His plea resonated with her, and she nodded, "I would be happy to think it over. Do you have a written pitch? Maybe an outline?"
Brandi brightened instantly, "I will make sure you have it no later than this evening. We're actually in Norfolk this week to tape our shows…we'd be happy to give you the V.I.P. treatment if you'd like to come? Meet some of our women's roster?"
Scout smiled, it all made a lot more sense as to why they were meeting in a hotel conference room and not some corporate office she had to fly out to. She had to admit, she was intrigued and it was a challenge.
"Would you mind if I brought my brother and nephew? I'd know they'd love it."
Cody Rhodes looked victorious, "Absolutely, we will show them a good time. You don't mind if we put a camera on you though? Maybe create some buzz?"
She shrugged, realizing that was something that never occurred until a few years ago but now she was extremely used to, "Of course."
After exchanging contact information and shaking hands, Brandi produced a hardback copy of her novel and asked Scout to sign it. She always felt humbled by the request, still in shock that anyone ever cared that much about her little story she wrote for herself.
"Are you serious? Do you know how famous some of these people are, Scout? All over the world? Trent's got action figures. He's going to lose his mind."
Jeremy was her big brother by less than a year and they were practically raised as twins. He taught history at the high school they had both attended and was a single father to her nine year old nephew, Trenton.
"So what you're telling me is that I'm going to be the cool Aunt for this?"
Her brother laughed over the phone, "Here I thought you peaked with the Oscar nomination."
Scout had been doing research on her laptop all night with a bottle of red wine and wondered if she could make something out of this pitch, "The email says we get ringside seats and also backstage? Brandi wants me to meet some of the women's roster, so I need to be there a bit early."
"Trent's going to be in heaven. There's at least seven wrestlers he idolizes in AEW. And let's also be honest, having you at the show will get some press. Hometown hero and all."
Scout scrolled through the names and images of wrestlers in the promotion and thought that it was just wild enough to excite her. Wrestling was totally outside of her wheelhouse, but she was intrigued and felt the curious spark of inspiration turn in her mind.
There was a lot of buzz in the locker rooms about the hometown celebrity that would be sitting ringside at the tapings. Talent brought copies of her book to be signed…even Matt and Nick had requests for autographs from their wives.
Kenny had no idea who Scout Coopersmith was, but had a vague recollection of the movie she wrote coming out last fall. He had to google her and read her Wikipedia page. Thirty-seven years old, National Book Awards Finalist, won multiple film critics awards for her screenplay, nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay at the Academy Awards and also won her episode of Celebrity Jeopardy.
Cody and Brandi wanted her to write for their television project, which seemed like a big swing considering the year she had professionally.
Two hours before the show, Scout Coopersmith arrived with a tall, dark haired man and a kid that couldn't have been more than ten. Kenny watched as Brandi welcomed her with a hug and Cody engaged the man and the kid energetically.
Scout herself was all of five foot three and dressed in a navy jumpsuit that hung off one shoulder—much like what was popular in the 80's. Her icy blond hair was pulled back in a high ponytail and she had large, gold hoops in her ears and a pair of Ray-Ban aviators sitting on the top of her head.
Despite her glossy finish, she seemed normal.
Cody saw him lurking along with Nick and Matt and waved them over, "Scout, these are my fellow Executive Vice Presidents Matt and Nick Jackson and Kenny Omega. "
Scout reached out her hand with a slightly lopsided smile, "It's nice to meet you all, this is my brother Jeremy and my nephew Trenton."
After she shook Matt and Nick's hands, she shook his and he noticed the warmth in her voice and the graceful movement of her hand. Her nephew stood beside her, looking up at them with wide, astonished eyes.
Scout looked down at the kid and chuckled, "You'll have to forgive him. He's starstruck."
She ruffled Trenton's hair affectionately and he turned to look at her, "Aunt Scout. That's Kenny Omega and the Young Bucks. They're the fuckin' Elite."
An amused smile pulled at Kenny's lips, knowing that Trenton's father was horrified and Scout had to cover her mouth to stifle a laugh. Soon Matt, Nick, Cody and Brandi joined in with barely contained chuckles.
Jeremy fought the urge to laugh as well, but managed a not so stern "Language, Please."
Scout put her arm around her nephew and pulled him close in comfort, "It's okay, you're just a little overwhelmed, right bud?"
Trenton nodded and Brandi took Scout by the hand, "I'm going to steal her for a bit. Cody, will you show Jeremy and Trenton around?"
Cody nodded and Kenny watched as Brandi led Scout halfway down the hall before turning on one high heel to beckon him, "Kenny, you'd be helpful. Come with us."
When he caught up with the ladies, Brandi gestures towards him, "Kenny helps with setting up some of the matches in our women's division. Besides the Locker room, he's the best consultant I can think of."
Scout looked at him intently, "Oh, man. I apologize for all the questions in advance. This is outside my wheelhouse, but I'm a fast learner."
Kenny shrugged and almost made a comment about her being good at Jeopardy, but didn't want to come off as a creep, "No worries…you've created quite the buzz around here today."
Scout smiled sheepishly, "It's still so weird, honestly. A few years ago I was super unemployed. I've been surprised at how…recognizable I am? Most writers aren't."
When they reached the door to the ladies locker room, Brandi went in first to make the talent aware that there was a visitor. Kenny glanced at her and smiled, "I have a feeling you're going to get a big pop tonight when they put the cameras on you."
Scout gave him a questioning look, "Pop?"
He couldn't help but laugh a little, "Yeah. Reaction, basically. A lot of cheers. You're a superstar, after all."
Her cheeks went pink. He had made her blush, "Thanks."
Kenny nodded towards the arena, "See you out there, then. We'll talk later."
A/N: Hi all! First time trying this. Let me know if I should continue!