June 19th 2010, Toronto, Canada
Tyler Black sat in his locker room, holding the Ring of Honor World Championship Belt, he would be defending his belt tonight against his old nemesis Davey Richards. Unlike the FIP Title, he had no intention of handing over the ROH Title, if he wanted it he was going to have to defeat him. It had been a little over a year since his break up with Danielle, he had stayed focused on his career and when he thought things couldn't get worse, in September he had to have neck surgery for a bulging disc. However, things started to look up after the surgery, he was able to recover in time to enter and win the Survival of the Fittest Tournament which gave him a shot at the Ring of Honor World Championship Belt. On February 13, 2010, he defeated Austin Aries and became the Ring of Honor World Champion. He even had a new girlfriend now, her name was Elizabeth. She works for ROH as a technician specialist. What better person to understand his career than someone in the industry. He felt really lucky and fortunate for his success in and out of the ring.
The past nine months had been a real learning experience for Raven. She really loved all the traveling, they went from town to town entering local tournaments some were big and others were small but the crowds were always vocal during the matches. She couldn't believe how different and vast U.S. was, they could be in a city like New York where there were so many people you could hardly move and little towns like Bowman, TN where you hardly saw anyone for miles but the beautiful green open spaces.
The seven other wrestlers she was traveling with were like big brothers to her: Mike, Ray, Jimmy, Bobby, Derek, James and Alfredo. They all fascinated her, they all had their own story, backgrounds and reasons for wrestling. They took Raven under their wing, because of how hard she worked during the practice sessions and never once did she complain or quit, she just took whatever they threw at her. Raven would spend most of her time practicing for hours with them, the grueling sessions would often leave her so exhausted and bruised that she could barely make it back to the hotel. She didn't mind pushing her body beyond its limit because it only made her stronger and a better wrestler. They would often practice their signature moves on her and showed her how to avoid them or how to receive less of an impact. They also did this with the submission holds like the sharpshooter or the crossface. It was their way of preparing themselves for difficult opponents who tried to counteract their moves. Of course, this only added to Raven's arsenal of tricks.
The first 3 months were the most difficult for Raven, she didn't win any of her matches, which only wounded her ego. Her inability to put together a combination of effective moves was often her undoing. After each bout, her and Ben would sit for hours going over her matches, discussing what she could have done or things she needed to improve on. Raven was a sponge and took everything Ben said to heart. After each match she became better and more confident with her moves and finally, she won her first match. After eight months on tour, she was practically unbeatable, she would even take on male wrestlers if there were no female wrestlers, which was often the case.
They were currently in Buffalo, New York on their way to Toronto, Canada. Ben had said there was a major tournament going on called Death Before Dishonor it was part of the Ring of Honor. He said they would not be going to compete but to see professional wrestlers in action. But not everyone wanted to go, some were just tired of all the traveling and just wanted to relax or party. "Rave, you should go, you have never seen a professional wrestling tournament. It would be a great learning experience for you.", said Ben. Raven of course quickly agreed, she was so excited and could hardly wait. They had already been driving for an hour, they had about 45 minutes to go and they would be there, Raven was counting down the minutes. Mike was driving with Ben sitting in the passenger's seat. Raven was sitting in the back of the van with Ray, Derek and James. They were joking and talking about who the better wrestler was, but as they got closer they started to talk about the matches they were going to see. Especially the main event, Tyler Black would be defending his championship title against Davey Richards, apparently the two had a rivalry going on for the past couple of years. Mike and James were going for Tyler Black because he was a great technical wrestler and he was never one to give up. Ray and Derek were going for Davey Richards because he was a tough, gritty fighter. They were bugging Raven to break their tie, when she didn't given them answer Derek started to tickle her on her side ribs. "Stop it Derek" Raven said between giggles. "Come on choose one." Derek was not going to stop until she gave answer, he increased his effort in tickling her harder. Raven tried to squirm away from him but there was no where to go. "Hey, Derek leave Rave alone", Mike shouted. "Not until she chooses one." Raven was laughing so hard, she could hardly breathe. "Ok, Ok I am going for Tyler".
"Aww, you are just going for him because he is a pretty boy", Derek said scornfully.
"No, I am not"
"Yes, you are,
"NO, I AM NOT"
"YES, YOU ARE, you are probably all wet between the legs for him like all the other girls."
Raven punched Derek in the arm "OUCH!"
"I don't even know what he looks like, remember, I have never seen a professional wrestler in action before."
"Oooo, she gotcha there Derek", James said teasingly.
"Did you have to hit me so hard?", Derek was rubbing his arm where Raven had punched him.
"What you can't take a jab from the princess over here?" Ray said mockingly, as he pointed his thumb at Raven.
"She maybe a princess but she sure the hell doesn't hit like one. Raven show him, HIT HIM."
Raven turned around in her seat and was about to punch Ray, when Ben interrupted. "ENOUGH! Raven turn the hell around, all of you put your seat belts on and shut the hell up, we are almost there."
"YES DAD!", they all said in unison, with big smiles on their faces and did as they were told.
They had arrived at the arena 2 hours before show time, Ben knew some of the wrestlers and staff. He was immediately greeted once they entered the arena. He had introduced them to the Briscoe Brothers, who would be competing for the tag team championship. Since Ben was busy, Raven decided to walked around checking out the venue. She sat on the bench and watched the crew do the final touches before the show started. It was a lot bigger than what she was use to and the first pay-per-view she would get to see. It was all pretty exciting and she couldn't wait for the show to start. She didn't know how long she sat there but soon the place started to fill with people. "Hey Rave" Derek shouted as he came rushing toward her excitedly. "What's up Derek?", she said with a smile. "Ben needs you, he wants you to come right now. Come on, hurry up!" Raven laughed at his urgency. "What is this all about?", she said as she started to follow him backstage. "You'll see, just come." Derek led her to a locker room, where she found Ben standing in the center with a big grin on his face, behind him stood Mike, James, and Ray also smiling. Raven had never seen Ben quite so happy, before she could say anything he grabbed her by both her shoulders. "Guess what kiddo? I have a match for you tonight." Raven blinked a couple of times trying to comprehend what Ben just said. "Could you repeat that?", not sure she heard what she thought she heard. "You have a match with the Diva's Champion."
Raven felt the blood drain from her body, "What do you mean I have a match? You said we were here to watch professional wrestlers in action, not to be in action."
"Apparently, the Diva's opponent got held up, the plane she was on had mechanical problems. The ROH Commissioner needs someone to fight Diva's Champion tonight or else there will be an empty time slot and he can't afford that since this is an important event, not to mention a pay-per- view. It will not be a title match but an exhibition match." Raven was finding it hard to breathe "Arrre you crazy Ben?", she yelled. "She is a professional female wrestler, I am an amateur at best. It would be an insult to put me in the same ring with her. She has years of experience in and out of the ring and not to mention on the road experience. How could you think I could even hope to compete with someone like that?" Raven was now on the verge of hyperventilating.
"Calm the fuck down, Raven.", Ben shouted. "Get away from the bench guys let her sit down. Raven put your head between your legs and take deep breaths." Raven did as she was told. Mike sat to the right of her rubbing her back up and down, "Rave, you can do this, calm down.", he said gently. Minutes passed as Raven's breathing came under control. Ben kneeled in front of her and squeezed her knees, she looked up at him with apprehension in her eyes. "Look, kiddo, in this business you never let an opportunity pass you by because you never know if it will ever come again. This is an opportunity of a lifetime, people in this business wait for years for something like this and here it falls in your lap." Raven looked behind him, she saw James, Derek and Ray nodding in agreement, she felt ashamed for reacting the way she did. She did not deserve this chance, they did, they were so dam talented and she had learned so much from them. They were the ones that had given up and sacrificed so much for this sport. "Are you seriously going to walk away from it?" Ben said with a great deal of exasperation.
"Ben is right Rave. We would all kill to be in your position." Mike said with conviction.
"And if I lose badly ...?" She whispered, but what she really wanted to ask, if he would still want her around. "So, what? Its not like this is going to be your profession, in 3 months you are going back to school remember, but don't you want to know if you have what it takes to go against the best. After all the minutes, hours, days, weeks and months you have put into this don't you want to know if you can stand in the ring with the Diva's Champion." Ben hated the thought of Raven leaving but he wanted to see how far she could go, which is why when he found out about the diva's opponent, he pushed the commissioner for the match. He knew he put his reputation on the line, if Raven didn't do well he would be a laughing stock, however he knew she would not disappoint him.
Ben stood up and made Raven stand up to, "Kiddo, I would never put you in a position, I didn't think you could win. I have believed you in since the moment you walked into my school." Raven looked up into Ben's eyes, she did not see deception but sincerity. It is true, Ben has always believed in her. Why? She did not know but if he says she can win then she can. Ben could see the storm of emotions swirling in her eyes, she closed them for a minute and when she opened them again. Ben saw determination and confidence. This was The Raven that was going to win the match.
Ben had sent James to the van to retrieve Raven's ring gear for the match. When he turned around to speak with her, he saw her leaving the room. "Where are you going?" Ben asked with concern.
"Just give me 10 minutes. I need to collect my thoughts. I will be right back."
"Alright but only 10 minutes or I am sending Mike to look for you."
Raven nodded and walked away. She was scared but also excited, she had to get her emotions under control if she wanted to give a good performance, otherwise, she was definitely going to get her ass kicked tonight and be humiliated in front of all those people. Raven wanted to be alone, she approached a door and knocked on it, when no one answered, she walked into the empty locker room. The room was dark except for the single light that shined above in the center of the room. Raven sat on the bench closest to the door and brought her knees up to her chin. She thought of what she needed to do and how she could win her match.
Suddenly, the lights in the room came on and a man walked in toward the bench across from her. His back was facing her as he was looking through a duffle bag for something. Raven didn't know what to do, should she say hello or sneak out. He was only wearing a pair of sweats and tennis shoes, he had his long curly dark brown hair in a ponytail on his right shoulder. She could see the muscles in his back, his tan, warm skin but what caught her attention was the tattoo of the seven Chinese characters on the middle of his back. This is awkward, she thought as she stood up and decided to let him know she was there, "Rectitude, Respect, Courage, Honor, Benevolence, Honesty and Loyalty." The moment Raven spoke the man turned around in surprise as she read off the meaning of the seven Chinese characters. He was gorgeous, he stood about 6'1, had a slender muscular built. His face was framed with short beard and mustache but his best feature was his big, brown, expressive eyes. Several emotions ran through them as he just stood there staring at her, she could see surprise, anger, annoyance. Nervously she rambled on, "In Japan, they are referred to as the Seven Virtues of the Samurai and in China the Warrior's Code. Do you consider yourself a warrior?"
Tyler said nothing as she rambled on, the last thing he needed was a fangirl trying to jump him, but she was not acting like one. She was beautiful girl even with the simple clothing she had on. She was wearing tennis shoes, skinny jeans, a red t-shirt and a black hoodie. The t-shirt had a v neck which showed some her ample cleavage, just above her cleavage was the only piece of jewelry she seemed to have on, which was an octagon pendent on a gold chain. She had long black hair, olive colored skin, an oval shaped face and stunning hazel eyes. He took several steps toward her, invading her personal space trying to intimidate her, so she would leave, but she was not so easily intimidated, "What are you doing in my locker room?" Raven stood her ground and stared into his big brown eyes as he towered over her, their bodies inches apart. "I didn't know this was anyone's locker room. Your name is not on the door and when I knocked earlier no one answered." Tyler felt like a shit for being too aggressive with her, in a softer tone he asked, "What are you doing here?" "I-I just needed a moment to myself." Tyler stared into her hazel eyes, he believed her. An awkward silence fell over them as they continued to stare at each other, she was more beautiful close up he thought, he had the urge to touch her to caress her cheek. It was Tyler who ended the silence but not the eye contact. "How did you know what my tattoo said?"
Raven relaxed and smiled as she sensed a change in his mood, "My brother had a poster of them hanging on his bedroom wall. So, do you think yourself as a warrior?"
"Considering what I do, yes."
Raven was thankful to be wearing her hoodie, she could feel goose bumps forming all over her arms and the back of her neck. He was still so close to her, she could faintly smell his cologne. "Are you any good?", she whispered.
It was Tyler's turn to smile as he suddenly wondered, what it would be like to kiss her full red lips, "People say I am." He wondered if her lips would be as soft as they looked.
"But what do you say?", O my god he is going to kiss me, she thought. As Tyler lowered his face toward hers. "I'm pretty good." She could feel his breathe on her face as he answered her question and just when their lips were about to meet the door burst open and they jumped apart.
It was Mike, "What the hell Raven?! We have been looking for you everywhere, you need to get ready." He grabbed Raven by the arm and yanked her out of the room. Raven turned to see Tyler shaking his head. He couldn't believe what he was about to do, he had a girlfriend and here he was about to kiss this total stranger. What he hell was the matter with him? He had a good thing with Elizabeth and here he was about to ruin it.