( 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗣𝗧𝗘𝗥 𝗢𝗡𝗘 )

❝𝙨𝙤... 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙙𝙤 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙬?❞

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   𝗠𝗔𝗬 𝟮𝟱,𝟮𝟬𝟭𝟵 — a glorious day in the world of wrestling that Hadley wanted etched to her forehead, even if looked down on like an adulterer with an embroidered red A to cast shame upon.

DISHONOR ON YOUR COW,
DISHONOR ON YOUR FAMILY.

   It was 2020, and talk was so yesterday.

The glory of that day all began to unravel when she entered the living room in her parent's home after having successfully avoided kitchen duties.

   Was she an idiot in the kitchen? Not entirely, but time was precious and so Hadley invested her undivided attention to brainstorming for new character ideas.

   Maybe her childhood room would bring the ultimate inspiration, or so she had thought when laying stomach down on the floor to hastily write on a journal.

   Hadley spoke to herself, asking where she could go with Abigail next until the tangy aroma of barbecue filled the room.

   She could smell the barbecue— which meant the slathered ribs where very close to being done, so it then seemed perfect to finally enter the kitchen premise.

    Once there, her grandpa had just finished typing a congratulatory birthday tweet to Roman Reigns. In typical fashion, he had passed the phone onto her to assess.

     So accustomed to proofing nearly anything he wrote or typed down, Hadley once thought she'd go into the writing field. The creative world of editing for some magazine or publishing house of sorts would have been a lovely life, but instead she was sucked into the crazy wrestling business, or art, depending on how cynical one was.

  
    ❝Is that good?❞

   He had asked as Hadley plopped on the well worn couch beside him and inspected the message. Truthfully, it was rather generic, but nonetheless nodded with approval because her own cellphone was going off with notifications.

    Twitter was blowing up, and when refreshing the #AEW results, she delicately cupped her hand over her mouth to suppress a gasp.

    Maybe her mind was playing tricks on her again, but there was an eerie stillness in the room. In fact, all she heard was the fabric of her grandfather's windbreaker as he removed it.

    Time felt like it ticked even slower as she once again dragged to the top of the page and waited for it to refresh.

   ❝Is this real?❞

   She wondered, feeling out of breath with anticipation.

    That silence came to an abrupt end when Hunter burst inside the room with a flushed complexion — ❝TURN THE TV ON!❞

    He bellowed as Stephanie rushed for the remote control. It only took a minute for her to find the channel and purchase the event, and still, Hadley could practically hear their hearts wanting to beat out of their chests.

   ❝What's the matter with them?❞ Shane then whispered as Hadley joined him to close the french doors leading to the backyard that Hunter left swinging when he stormed in.

   ❝I—

   Hadley began, unable to form a single word as Jon Moxley graced their television screen.

    In all his glory, Jon stood at the top of the stacked poker chips monument looking better than ever.

     Saying that Jon had undergone a glow up was a vast understatement. The truth was, Jon Moxley had eaten Dean Ambrose up for a light breakfast and was now a different kind of specimen.

    A DIFFERENT KIND OF MONSTER.

The look aside, he transcended that larger than life energy that was electric.

    It was magnetic, and even though Hunter went on a spiel about how one simply does not bite the hand that feeds, his eyes never left the screen.

    Not for one second.

 ❝He played them like a damn fiddle.❞ Shane dared to whisper at Hadley who looked up at him with a wide grin.

   ❝Go make sure your grandpa still has a heartbeat.❞ He teased, ruffling her hair and providing a quite literal push of encouragement.

   In fear that they'd detect joy in her eyes & try to skin her alive, Hadley cautiously  tip toed around the two before she made it back to the couch next to Vince.

    While Paul and Stephanie loudly complained back and forth, Vince turned to face his grand daughter with a sly look on his face.

   Knowing the look all too well, Hadley signed in peace as he put an arm over her lean shoulders.

   Vince kicked his shoes off, extending his legs over on the coffee table & just like that, it felt like she was a kid again.

   The same old story she's been told her entire life is that she's watched the product since being a mere baby.

  She'd get comments like,

    ❝Hey kid, I remember you dangling from Vince's lap, trying to take his headset off when Dwayne and Austin were feuding❞

or

❝Remember how much you cried when the Montreal Screwjob happened? You must have thought Brett was going to kill your grandpa.❞

  And still, the first memories that drew in her mind where never from when she was backstage at an age where she couldn't even speak yet. Much less remember so clearly. Her fondest memories sparked a tradition.

   Every weekend she'd watch wrestling with her grandpa. He was constantly working, so it wouldn't be until the witching hours.

    It became a habit of hers to sleep in early so she could wake up at 2am just when Vince's insomnia was at its peak.

    She'd sit curled up next to him, and the two would watch New Japan Pro Wrestling because that was the only thing on that early in the morning.

   At the tender age of 5, Hadley was regarded as Vince's eyes and ears as she'd help him scout talent.

❝You have to tell me if they're good or not.❞

Vince would explain as he reviewed audition tapes with her in his lap.

   Hadley typically liked the goofy ones. She couldn't tell you why back then, but now she'd say it's because it took guts to act a fool. Her heart always felt a thrill when watching wrestlers deeply comit to strong character driven ring personalities.

   Then again, she also cheered for the generic looking but insanely gifted backyard wrestler.

   From a young age, her love for all types of wrestling was cultivated and it only grew stronger. As she watched the AEW Double or Nothing show, Hadley found it impossible not to smile.

    As Moxley cemented Kenny Omega with a dirty deeds to then seal the deal of destruction with an over the shoulders toss bow Stephanie walked away seething.

    Seconds after, Paul followed in line.

❝What a lunatic.❞

  Shane then joked, popping back into the living room with a pint of cookie dough ice cream.

   Hadley couldn't help but to chuckle, and that's when her grandpa finally broke into a smile.

   She knew better than anyone that Vince Mcmahon would always respect a rebel.

It took one to know one. Sometimes you just had to go against the grain, even it that grain was family.

❝Jon Moxley just destroyed Kenny Omega. My god. What a night it's been here at AEW Double or Nothing.❞

JR triumphantly concluded as the cameras zoomed in on Moxley extending his arms open wide before the camera faded to black.

   Truthfully, Hadley had wanted to bask in Moxley's glory by rewatching the segment, but she didn't want to deal with Paul or Stephanie walking back in to give her some big corporate family supports family only bullshit speech.

   Although, after a few minutes when it seemed that the coast was finally clear, she spoke up.

    "So .. what do you make of the show?" Hadley began, turning to face her grandpa that was the portrait of a giddy toddler.

    Vince grabbed the controller first, rewinding on the event before patting her knee & speaking up with the corners of his thin lips twitching into a mischievous smile— ❝this is some good shit.❞

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AUTHOR'S NOTES

hi hi hi, firstly thank you all so much
for your support on reading this +
seeing your comments really brighten
my day. | this story jumps back &
forth a bit so I will definitely
provide dates at the start of the
chapter as this takes place before
the prologue (if that makes sense).
next chapter will take place after wm36
& also I still can't get over the fact
that they used the "this is some
good shit" line for the bray/cena
match, it made me jaw drop.
♥️