Post by Gabrielle Visconty on Jun 24, 2020 23:13:31 GMT -6
6/24/20
11:58 PM
Honolulu, Hawaii
11:58 PM
Honolulu, Hawaii
The sound of music leads us in on a beach in the middle of the night. There is a bonfire roaring in the middle of a small gathering of young adults. The ocean laps tirelessly on the shore a few yards from the fire and the moonlight coming from the nearly full moon plays on the waves. It's fairly obvious by now that there is a small party going on. Two figures walk into the edge of the screen, vastly different in stature. One is small and female and the other is large and male. The camera moves in on the two figures as they are still out of the range of the party.
“I’m not sure this is a great idea, Hank.”
Gabi’s voice is easily identifiable before the camera can make out her face.
“Relax Gabs, it is just old high school friends.”
The males voice comforts her as they finally get close enough to the fire that we can now make out Gabrielle and a large Samoan. Gabi stops and grabs Hank’s hand, pulling him to a stop.
“I don’t want to do this.”
She whispers loudly enough for Hank to hear over the music.
“Hey Hank!”
Someone yells from the fire as he is recognized by the group. Suddenly the attention is drawn to the two of them.
“Hey Mike. How’s it going?”
Gabi fades a little bit behind Hank’s massive form in a subconscious attempt at hiding.
“You bring Andrea with you?”
Hank cringes a bit before he pulls Gabi out from behind him and into the light. Gabi has a nervous grin on her face as she gives a slight wave. The attack by Morgan Darkwater is still visible on her - the cut on her chin and bruise on her temple.
“No, I brought Gabrielle with me.”
“Hi Mike.”
Gabi says as Hank walks toward the crowd slightly pulling a hesitant Gabi with him.
“Oh my God! Gabs?!”
One of the girls exclaims as she darts out of the group and runs up and hugs Gabi around the neck. Gabi’s nervous smile fades into pure excitement as she returns the hug.
“Sara!”
Hank laughs and walks off as the two girls are joined by a third as she comes slamming into Gabi and Sara.
“Gabs!”
“Jen? Holy shit! Hank didn’t tell me you all were down here.”
Gabi says as the girls usher her down to the campfire. Gabi seems to ease up as she is welcomed into the group by all the familiar faces. A short bit passes as the group mostly chit chats and reminisces about their high school days or college life, but ultimately the elephant in the room comes out. Gabi is sitting on a blanket next to Hank drinking a beer when Mike suddenly asks the dreaded question.
“Hey Gabs, I think most of us here follow your exploits in the EWC… How are you doing?”
Gabi’s smile fades a bit to the artificial smile she wore after the loss of her parents.
“Better.”
She says softly and her friends quickly pick up on the underlying pain in her voice, but before any of them can respond Gabi continues.
“It’s a day to day battle. You all know the turn of the year was… painful for me. Then the addiction. I came back here to clear my head… someplace where I have always felt comfortable; home. I’m debating on selling their home and pulling up roots once and for all. I’m thinking about staying in California, near Candy and Robbie. They have been amazing and so nice to me.”
“Candy is so damn fine.”
Someone says from off camera and draws a chuckle from the crowd, taking the seriousness off the tone of the conversation.
“Whoa! Candy is my friend, and very married! Calm down back there!”
She adds sarcastically to only increase the laughter.
“But seriously, they opened their home up to me when I was at my absolute lowest and needed to detox. They probably saved my life. That means so much to me.”
Gabi adds as she stares into the fire.
“What’s it like being in the EWC?”
Gabi smiles as she thinks about it for a second only to have Hank interject as she was getting ready to answer.
“Enough of asking her questions. She is here to take her mind off the EWC, not explain it to you all.”
There is a general consensus that agrees with what Hank is saying. The group resumes chatting and hanging out. The image fades as the camera moves away from the group.
The image resumes and we can see it is early, as the sun is just starting to illuminate the night sky off on the eastern horizon. The fire and party has faded down to just a few people. The music has been turned down and they are sitting next to each other as they are finishing off the last slices of some pizza and drinking beer. Gabi takes a sip of her beer before she notices Hank looking at her. She smirks at him and gives him the ‘what’ look.
“I missed you Gabs.”
Hank says before polishing off his beer.
“Thanks… but who is Andrea? Mike asked if you brought Andrea and you dodged it. Are you seeing someone?”
Gabi questions as Hank smiles before looking off at the sunrise.
“Andrea has been my ‘off and on’ girlfriend for about a year. She’s from Mililani… and we have been ‘off’ for almost a month. So, if you are wondering if I am seeing someone, it’s a complicated answer.”
Gabi laughs as she takes another sip of her beer and nods her head to Hank.
“Okay. You never offered up that info and I never asked. Just wanted to make sure I wasn’t wrecking something by being out here with you tonight. I appreciate you bringing me out here… It's really helped take my mind off things… sorta.”
“Sorta?”
Hank questions as Gabi digs the last slice of pizza out of the box and tosses the empty box into the dying fire.
“Well… I... I just wanted to know where we went wrong?”
Hank shakes his head and sighs as he stares at Gabi.
“What?”
She questions Hank and his stare.
“Wrestling. Gabs, you put everything in the rearview when you went off to wrestle. You got accepted into the indys and everything else became unimportant.”
The bitterness in his voice causes Gabi to look away. She tosses the last slice of pizza into the fire, her appetite gone.
“I’m sorry. I guess I really was a self centered brat after all.”
“I’m not mad at you Gabs, you had gotten exactly what you’d been dreaming of since the 5th grade. To think that you wouldn’t follow that dream would have been crazy. No one was shocked that you made it into the indys… We were all shocked when you made it into the EWC, though. I can’t count how many times we’d all pile into the bar and watch EWC shows on the TV’s, watching one of our friends tackle the best in the world. We even had a few PPV’s special events when you were on them. ‘Come out and see Honolulu’s own Gabrielle Visconty on EWC’s PPV!’ But it hurt to watch you up there… So far away and distant from the tomboy I knew growing up… The girl I took to Senior Prom. My first kiss.”
Gabi swats him on the arm.
“Liar! I was NOT your first kiss!”
They both laugh.
“You were the hot ticket item in the 9th grade, buddy. I think Sara had a shrine dedicated to you in her damn closet! But who wouldn’t chase after the football jock who was moving into the varsity team in his freshman year?”
Hank does a mock bow motion as Gabi rolls her eyes.
“Oh? I never thought of you as ‘lusting’ after me until near the end of our senior year when I asked you to Prom.”
“Nah, I honestly never looked at you as anything other than a friend up until 11th grade. I always saw you chasing after the cheerleaders… That was about as far from me as possible. Why would you be interested in me? I was more interested in jumping off Shane’s garage in our backyard wrestling league. ‘Lady Fate off the roof and through the tables! BAWGAWD SHE JUST KILLED SOMEONE’!”
Gabi bursts out laughing as Hank chuckles and shakes his head.
“It was funny when your Gymnastics coach was trying to figure out why it always looked like you got hit by a car. She thought you were being abused at home!”
Both Gabi and Hank fall out laughing.
“My God, my mom was so pissed when her and dad got called into school on that and I had to explain I was backyard wrestling.”
The last comment knocks the humor out of the moment as both her and Hank fall silent for a long moment. Hank finally looks over at Gabi as she stares off into the night sky. The weight of the memory crushing her. Hank reaches over and wraps his arm around her shoulder.
“You doing okay?”
“No.”
Gabi replies softly before she sighs, leaning into him as she continues to speak.
“I’m hollow. I’m a recovering addict out there going through the motions, trying to find out if I still have the drive to continue. It's all changed now that mom and dad are gone… and I am sober.”
“That doesn’t sound like the Gabi Vee I know.”
Hank replies as he hugs her softly with one arm.
“I know personally that both your parents were very proud of you… Yes, even your mother.”
Hank says before he notices Gabi fighting off tears.
“Gabs, I’m sorry.”
“No. I needed to hear that.”
Gabi says as she looks up with a soft smile on her face. Hank winks at her as he realizes the tears aren’t from pain. She turns into Hank, pushing him onto his back as she flops on his chest. She stares him in the eyes a moment, grinning before lightly kissing him. Hank wraps his arms around her waist.
“Gabs, what are you doing?”
“Thanks. Thanks for being here for me… even when I wasn’t there for you.”
Hank smiles up at her and laughs. Gabi offers him a smirk as she lays her head on his chest.
“I haven’t felt this relaxed in a long time…”
Hank rubs her back softly as he stares up at the sky. Gabi yawns as she cuddles against him, a smile on her face as she watches the dying fire.
“I could stay here, like this, forever.”
“You know you could come back anytime.”
“I’m thinking about it.”
Gabi eyes are heavy as she smiles to herself.
“I’d like that.”
Hank explains as he looks down at the nearly asleep Gabi. Her eyes suddenly snap open and she sits up quickly.
“Fuck!”
Gabi’s outburst startles Hank as he sits up as well. He looks at Gabi as she starts digging into her pocket frantically before pulling out her cell.
“Shit! I forgot to call Candy!”
Gabi is almost frantic as she brings up EWCTV on her phone, flipping to the FSW show.
“Gabi, are you okay? What’s going on?”
He questions as Gabi looks up from her phone and points to the cut on her chin.
“Morgan Darkwater… He threatened Candy when he attacked me on Hardcore Revolution! If he’s made a move on her…”
Her eyes start to mist up at the thought of Morgan attacking Candy as he did her.
“Gabi! Calm down, I am sure Candy can take care of herself.”
Gabi’s expression hardens as she glares up at Hank with cold blue eyes.
“No. That mother fucker touches her or Robbie and I will kill him! He isn’t going to fight fair… He’ll swarm them like he did me, hiding behind his Reavers.”
Gabi looks at her phone as she starts scanning through the events on FSW frantically. Gabi appears generally upset that Candy lost her match to Jordan Sharpe, but seems relieved that there was no showing of Morgan Darkwater and his Reavers. She shuts the phone off and stuffs it back in her pocket.
“Better?”
Hank questions as Gabi just nods her head and leans back against him.
“But I think I am heading back to California tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow, as in today, or tomorrow as in the day after today?”
Hank laughs at his confusing statement as he looks out at the sun starting to rise. Gabi shoves Hank back again and leans her head back on his chest.
“Maybe Friday.”
She replies as she closes her eyes and smiles.
“Maybe…”