Quote Me Happy #13 ~ "A Short Story"

[Freeman]

"Oh God, why does this always happen to me?"

L.A, 23/08/2009, 21:24

Feeling empty and dejected, Jeff sat in the dark, cold room, with his head held in his hands, wondering where it all went wrong. He had asked the question, but recognised that it had been a pointless act. "If there really was a God, why the hell would he be talking to me anyway?" he reasoned with himself. At this moment in time, he was supposed to be wrestling what could've potentially been the best match of his career so far, however that no was no longer the case. Instead, he had failed to show, for reasons he simply could not explain. It was only a few hours ago that he'd made the dreaded phone call to Vince himself, delivering the news that he was unable to wrestle tonight, news that he was sure would officially end his second run in the company. Prior to Summerslam, Jeff had always maintained that he would be taking a break from wrestling and would plan to return in a year or so. Oh, how he had been looking forward to it, time off from the grueling WWE schedule to spend time on all the things he missed doing at home. However, he would trade a lifetime on the road with WWE for his current situation, because now it looked like this planned break would now turn into something a little more permanent. He knew how bad everything looked, and how there was no way anyone in the company could ever trust him again. No, this was it, the final straw that broke the proverbial camel's back. This was probably the final straw that would break the backs of his fans too, the very same people who had supported him throughout his whole career. He could try to explain his situation to them, try to make them understand, but what would be the point? Even his most loyal supporters recognised that he was a man with numerous problems, and they probably wouldn't believe him anyway, not after something like this. How could he have been so stupid? How could he let his guard down like that? Hindsight is indeed a wonderful thing, and it is one of the negatives of living in the moment, you tend to make quick and poorly thought out decisions. As he took in the cold, damp air, he reflected on his life so far, trying to remember only the good, but the pain he was going through at this moment was too much to try to ignore. The failed drug tests, the addictions, the missed opportunities, everything was coming back to haunt him in one moment of living hell. This was the lowest he'd ever felt in his entire life, and as he sat and pondered all the bad luck he'd endured throughout his life, he couldn't stop a small tear from trickling down his face.

***

"Mr McMahon, I'm afraid I have some bad news about tonight..."

Staples Centre, L.A. 23/08/2009, 18:32

Summerslam had always been one of his favourite events of the year, second only to Wrestlemania in fact, and this year was shaping up to be one of the best in recent memory. He had put together a stacked card, with many "big fight" style matches on it, but none of them compared to his main event. A TLC match between two of his most recent breakout main event stars that promised to tear the house down. Yes, he had been looking forward to this pay per view for a long time now, that was until he received the news that would jeopardise the entire evening. He was in total shock, that was the only way he could describe his current state of mind. The phone call he had just received from Jeff was one he had been dreading for ages now, even going as far as having nightmares about it. However there was no denying the truth, not anymore. Vince knew that rehiring Jeff wouldn't be without risk, but the potential reward was too great to ignore. Yes, Jeff had his problems in the past, but he'd overcame them and went on to become one of the most popular superstars of the past decade. The fans loved him, and Vince was only too happy to give them what they wanted. He understood that Jeff had been struggling recently, and that he would need time off, but now it was absolutely certain that he wouldn't be coming back, ever. Vince couldn't let this one slide, in fact he couldn't make exceptions for anyone, even Jeff. There was no way back for him now, not after the latest stroke he'd just pulled. As Vince paced around his office in the Staples Centre, it became apparent to him that all he felt toward Jeff now was anger. Anger that Jeff hadn't told him. Anger that Jeff had spat in the faces of all the fans, and everyone in the company. However most of all, anger that Jeff had spat in his face, after he had given him such a wonderful opportunity, and had put all of his trust in him. Vince loved all of his wrestlers, he'd often gone as far saying that they were like family to him. However, when a family member lets you down, it can often hurt more than if some Jo Schmo lets you down, and that was exactly how Vince was feeling now. With his hands clasped tightly behind his back, Vince couldn't help himself but utter the words, "never again." Never again would another wrestler keep him awake at night. Never again would another wrestler be given so many chances. Never again would he put so much trust in someone, particularly someone with as many problems as Jeff. However, most importantly, never again would another wrestler make a fool out of Vincent Kennedy McMahon.

***

"Hello, is that the L.A.P.D? I think I have some information that may concern you..."

Los Angeles Police Department, L.A. 23/08/2009. 16:07

Officer Daniels hadn't worked for the L.A.P.D that long, only for a year as a matter of fact. Despite him not being a part of the force for that long, he'd already witnessed so much action in L.A. He'd been assigned to many cases involving drugs, and he'd lost count of the amount of times that he'd arrested someone for possessing an illegal substance. However, he'd never been involved in anything as high profile as what he was about to do now. He'd been a wrestling fan for a long time now, so he knew all about the guy who he was about to go and investigate. The boys down at the station had just received an anonymous tip off that a certain Jeff Hardy had a large amount of crystal meth in his bag at the Staples Centre, where the latest WWE pay per view was about to take place. It would be a standard search and arrest procedure, obviously if Hardy was found to have anything on him, but it didn't stop Daniels from going over what he had to do over and over again during the drive down there. His partner seemed relaxed, but he didn't have an eight year old son who idolised Jeff Hardy. How could Daniels tell his boy that he was the one who put his hero in jail? They arrived at the arena, and pulled up in the car park. The two cops made their way inside, flashing their badges to anyone who questioned them. It was a relatively short walk over to the men's locker room, but for Daniels, it felt like he'd just walked from L.A to N.Y. He'd been dreading this moment since he received the news that he would be the one to bust one of the Hardy brothers. He'd faced some of the toughest criminals that L.A had to offer, and he had never let any of them phase him, however, he was now more nervous about this arrest than any other he'd made in his entire life. As he opened the locker room door, he saw Jeff standing in the middle of the room alone, with a large gym bag situated bedside his foot. Daniels opened his mouth to speak, but his mouth was so dry from nerves that the words nearly didn't come out.
"L.A.P.D. This your bag sir?"
"Yeah, it is, there a problem officers?"
Daniels didn't reply, instead he opened up the bag, and to say he was surprised by what he found would be the understatement of the year. There wasn't just enough meth in there for Hardy himself, but enough to go round the entire locker room.
"Can you explain this sir?"
"No, for God sake, I don't know anything about this, I swear!"
"I'm afraid we're going to have to continue this conversation down the station."
"I want my lawyer! And I'm going to have to call Vince at some point, I'm supposed to be wrestling tonight!..."

***

"Enough messing around. Time to fulfill my destiny..."

Staples Centre, L.A. 23/08/2009. 15:24.

He usually hated getting to an arena so many hours before the show's supposed to start, but today was different. Today he had a purpose, he wouldn't just be sitting around doing a few stretches waiting for the show to get under way, no today he would finally get to do what he'd been wanting to do for a long time now. He would finally get the chance to fulfill his destiny, and boy had he been waiting a long time to do it. Matt Hardy could help a lot of things, but he couldn't help the way he felt right now. You see, even when they'd teamed together, Jeff always got the slightly louder crowd reaction, just praised that little bit more backstage and most importantly, got more opportunities than Matt ever did. "How the hell is this so?" Matt found himself asking. He had been a model employee, sticking with the company through thick and thin, the only small blip was outside of his control anyway, when his dickhead best friend slept with that whore of a woman he used to call his girlfriend. How the hell did he get screwed for that, when it wasn't even his fault?! No, it was always Jeff with this damn company, even when he wasn't there. I mean how would you feel if you work your ass off, lead a relatively clean lifestyle and do your best not to upset anyone in the company only to find that all the opportunities go to your unreliable, drug addict brother? You'd feel like taking matters into your own hands as well. It was true that ever since Jeff's latest title win, the green eyed monster that had always been present inside of Matt was now taking on a larger and more vicious form, and now was the time to do something about it. Yes, he was his brother, but he had been ignorant to the constant pain that he caused Matt over the last few years, and this only fueled Matt's anger even more. He had slipped out of his hotel room the previous night at some ridiculous hour, with the intent of meeting someone who could help him with his situation. He returned from this little "meeting", with enough crystal meth to be able to land his brother in very serious trouble. It was a rotten thing to do, however Matt reasoned that Jeff deserved the punishment for the way he treated him, and that Matt deserved his time in the spotlight, and with Jeff gone, this dream would be much more achievable. He waited for what seemed like an eternity for the locker room to empty out, and then for Jeff to finally leave his bad unattended. Then it was just a case of taking the drugs out of his bag, and planting them on Jeff. He hesitated, considering the magnitude of the decision he was about to undertake, could he really go through with it? A smile engulfed Matt's face, he'd made up his mind, and the words flowed out of his mouth like a river flowing into the sea. "No going back now, no excuses and no regrets. Fuck you Jeff..."

And with that, Matt closed Jeff's bag, and took his phone out ready to call the police...

Fin.

I'm Freeman, and this was me trying something new.

[Mister E]

Something new indeed. Your sequencing was spot on and the Matt twist at end finished things off quite nicely. Totally caught me too. A nice piece if creative writing here freeman. Interesting look too at the Hardy brothers also. One can only wonder what degree of it is true in reality! Fine work sir, you've come on a bundle these last few months!

[Cult Icon]

i loved this. you managed to successfully tweak your format and create a very interesting and realistic story for us readers. imo, this could actually work as a storyline to get jeff off of tv for his break, its that good. give vince a call and book it lol. very nice job freeman, this is my favorite column by you yet.

[Benjamin Button]

I don’t think Vince’s point of view tied in well with the rest of this. Even though, in a story of its own, it would have been good, seeing as you showed Jeff’s side and his.

But the rest of this was really good. Excellent job on the voice. You really made me feel what you wrote. I didn’t lose interest for a second. Very good timing too, considering Matt will soon be replacing Jeff.

[Andy_Savana]

You can write. know how I know? I assume you passed first grade where they taught you to write your first name. That is a given.

The problem I've had lately is all of your columns are quasi-fictional columns.

Sure you can present every column differently but eventually that just amounts up to you being Cena rapping nonstop.

Eventually he had to get serious. Sure it might hold you back for a column or two but a real writer gets past it.

since I suck at grammar.

I assume yours was fantastic.

[Super Chrisss]

The last thing I wanted to read was another Jeff Hardy column but you made this one awesome. I loved the different point-of-views and the sequencing was spot-on. One of your best columns IMO and it was cool how you still managed to incorporate some quotes into this.

In other words, excellent work my friend.

[Box Car Rocco]

Probably my favourite column of yours Freeman. Your normally full of good humour but here you showed you can write a short story (duh) that all ties together nicely and such. It took me a while to figure out you were going backwards but I thought that added to the feel of this.

[Andy]

I actually read this bad boy last night, and this morning because it was so darn good. Grammar, spelling, layout and presentation were all perfect, which is hard to achieve. You went backwards which I feel was a great move because it added an aura of mystique about the whole thing and strangely enough, it created suspense even though it was told differently from the norm.

There was something about this that reminded me of a film (don't know which one), and the whole column seemed realistic; from Vince's reaction, to Jeff's despair. It was almost as I was watching it all unfold, as your use of adjectives were superb, as was your attention to detail, for the majority.

Now to be extremely picky:

L.A.P.D. This your bag sir?"
"Yeah, it is, there a problem officers?"
Daniels didn't reply, instead he opened up the bag, and to say he was surprised by what he found would be the understatement of the year. There wasn't just enough meth in there for Hardy himself, but enough to go round the entire locker room.
"Can you explain this sir?"
"No, for God sake, I don't know anything about this, I swear!"
"I'm afraid we're going to have to continue this conversation down the station."
"I want my lawyer! And I'm going to have to call Vince at some point, I'm supposed to be wrestling tonight!..."

I would have prefered that you italicised either Jeff's or the Officer's words.



The next one:

L.A, 23/08/2009, 21:24

Staples Centre, L.A. 23/08/2009, 18:32

Los Angeles Police Department, L.A. 23/08/2009. 16:07

Staples Centre, L.A. 23/08/2009. 15:24.

Notice how there is a comma after some, then a full stop after the other couple.

Those were all that I could spot, and I tried very hard! I don't know whether you think it is a good idea or not, but maybe a second part somewhere down the line? Overall, fantastic and beautiful. I look forward to #14. Job well done.

[Petre Dyche]

Mate this was terrific! Probably could only qualm about the lack of paragraphing to break it up and make it a tad easier to read, but it's ai'ight.

I'm sure they're working on some way of getting rid of Jeff without it seeming like he's just taking a big pile of crap all over the push the company's given him over the last 12 months, and this might be it...unless they want to return Matt. Who knows, this idea wouldn't go amiss in WWE!

Again, it was fantastic. Completely off the chain from the previous few editions. Loved it. Keep it coming!

[Freeman]

Eoghan-

Something new indeed. Your sequencing was spot on and the Matt twist at end finished things off quite nicely.

Thank you kindly.

One can only wonder what degree of it is true in reality!

Indeed, I've always imagined Matt to be the jealous type. Thanks for your read and feed broseph.

Cult-

this could actually work as a storyline to get jeff off of tv for his break, its that good.

Really? Wow man, thanks.

very nice job freeman, this is my favorite column by you yet.

Damn, must have done something right then! Thank you for your kind words dude.

Benjy-

I don’t think Vince’s point of view tied in well with the rest of this.

'Twas a necessary evil though. I needed some way of connecting the arrest to Jeff sitting in his cell, and this was all I could come up with.

But the rest of this was really good. Excellent job on the voice. You really made me feel what you wrote. I didn’t lose interest for a second.

Then I did exactly what I set out to do. Thanks for your comments brother.

Andy Savana-

You can write. know how I know? I assume you passed first grade where they taught you to write your first name.

I did not, and I'm still trying. My name is supposed to be Fred, but I keep spelling it incorrectly as Freeman.

The problem I've had lately is all of your columns are quasi-fictional columns.

Drat, knew I'd be found out at some stage.

Eventually he had to get serious. Sure it might hold you back for a column or two but a real writer gets past it.

I will as well at some stage man, I've tried to write in a serious way, but I get about three paragraphs into it, decide it sucks, then write something silly. However, I think I will take your advice and sacrifice a couple of columns to get good at it.

since I suck at grammar.

I assume yours was fantastic.

It was. Cheers for your helpful feedback and advice man.

Mr Chrisss-

The last thing I wanted to read was another Jeff Hardy column

Yeah sorry about that, but once you get a good idea you just gotta roll with it, you dig?

One of your best columns IMO and it was cool how you still managed to incorporate some quotes into this.

One of my best? Wow, thanks bro, really gives me the confidence to try something like this again. Thanks as always for your encouraging words.

BCR-

Probably my favourite column of yours Freeman

I'm really starting to think I've done something right here! Thanks man!

It took me a while to figure out you were going backwards but I thought that added to the feel of this.

Took me a while to figure out how to go about it! Cheers for your very kind words my friend.

Andy-

I actually read this bad boy last night, and this morning because it was so darn good.

Again, wow, thank you.

There was something about this that reminded me of a film (don't know which one

Well, the whole backward sequencing shizzle here was inspired by the film "Memento", which pretty much tells the story backwards as well. So that's probably what it reminds you of.

Now to be extremely picky: I would have prefered that you italicised either Jeff's or the Officer's words.

Yep, perhaps in hindsight that would've been a better way of presenting it.

Notice how there is a comma after some, then a full stop after the other couple.

Fuck, yes I do now! Should've checked that a bit better, but never mind.

but maybe a second part somewhere down the line?

I'll definitely take it into consideration. Thanks as always for the read and feed matey.

Petre-

Probably could only qualm about the lack of paragraphing to break it up and make it a tad easier to read, but it's ai'ight.

Yeah should've done that really, I just couldn't be bothered to keep chucking in quotes at the start of every paragraph like I do with every edition.

I'm sure they're working on some way of getting rid of Jeff without it seeming like he's just taking a big pile of crap all over the push the company's given him over the last 12 months, and this might be it...unless they want to return Matt. Who knows, this idea wouldn't go amiss in WWE!

Actually you and Cult make good points. The way to get him off TV would be to use something similar to this where something bad happens to him which is outside of his control. Doubt it would be this story specifically, but you never know...

Again, it was fantastic. Completely off the chain from the previous few editions. Loved it. Keep it coming!

Thanks man, and I will keep 'em coming. Thank you for the very kind feedback.

[Uncle Joe]

This was a pretty good damn effort Free Man. I've been singing the praises of Hardy lately because I've just noticed how how good he's been. Although I saw Matt doing it from a mile away, but that's because we all know Matt is a jealous little bitch.

[Freeman]

Sorry this took me a little while to respond to, but

Joe-

This was a pretty good damn effort Free Man.

Thanks man, that's some pretty good damn feedback.

I've been singing the praises of Hardy lately because I've just noticed how how good he's been

Likewise, Hardy's been impressing me for a while now, and I've been enjoying his run in the main event.

Although I saw Matt doing it from a mile away, but that's because we all know Matt is a jealous little bitch.

Haha, no one likes Matt Hardy, and yeah I guess it was a little obvious. Anyway, thanks for the read and feed buddy.