“Ever had that feeling that life couldn’t be any better??”

The words echo through the room where Goth is seated, he is in a conversation with an interviewer about what has happened recently and what is ahead of him. He is smiling while drinking from a glass of water, his hair tied up in a ponytail while sporting an expensive button down shirt that compliments nicely with his dark blue jeans. The in ring veteran has got reasons to be smiling, having won several impact matches on Warfare, whereas the critics had doubts upon their minds on whether he would have stood a chance. And in Sin City Wrestling he had beaten a legend in his own right in Chronic Chris Page. Ultimately he had been granted an opportunity to face Atara Themis for the Xtreme championship in a glass chamber match. A match that he had been looking forward to compete in and face the woman that withheld him to win his first championship belt in XWF not so long ago, the mere fact that Atara had recently lost the championship belt didn’t change the feeling for him to enter that glass cage match with a violent individual as Atara.

“It’s like you are living a dream that you won’t be waking up from anytime soon.”

He continues as he was not anticipating for any response from the figure in front of him, he had looked him up and down from the moment that the interviewer had entered the restaurant that they had agreed to meet for the interview. Goth had come from the streets, he never liked watching people that looked sophisticated. But throughout the two decades that he had adapted in the world of wrestling had taught him a thing or two of lifestyle and how to dress. The interviewer immediately stood out in the most negative way, clothing that were destined to be thrown into the trash as well as not having shaved in over three weeks. It’s something that he could not withhold himself to mentally throw up at the mere thought that he had walked around like that when he was more than half the age than he is right now. But he remembered to remain a professional, mentally blocking out all the things that would cause him to get up and walk away from the interview. But ultimately he knew that this was a part of his life that he had to accept, even if he didn’t like it. The veteran rolls his eyes at the next question that the interviewer had asked him, the traditional questions that he had answered over a million times. Questions that he had wondered whether if all interviewers share the same brain and never register anything longer than 24 hours. But he has taught himself to look past it, smile at any questions and move on.

The thought of wondering whether Chris Page has ever had that same feeling like he is going through right now, he shrugs his shoulders and assume that he probably does.

“What would be a dream match for you?”

And there it is, the infamous dream match question that gets everyone excited. Having their own favorite dream matches that they want to see, but for Goth every match is a dream match. Every opponent is a dream match, but only a few make it seemingly perfect. His gaze towards the interviewer changes, he smiles once more as he has found an answer that he knows that wasn’t going to be on the list.

“Atara Themis.”

He holds up his hand, knowing that there will be a reaction that he had seen coming from a mile away. He does not want to explain himself as in defending his pick over every other possible selection that could be pulled out of the high hat. No, Goth wants the very next possible opponent, because he knows he won’t have to wait for it any time longer.

“Because of your loss against her a while ago??”

Goth is about to get up, clearly annoyed by the stupidity that the interviewer has shown to him already before he even had managed to open his mouth. But he refrains himself from getting up, he sees a target upon the face of the interviewer as if he was staring at dart board who is begging for a 180 close up of three darts sticking into the triple 20 position..

“Because of what???”

His voice is croaking as if he had not drank a drop of fluid of any kind, feeling his fingers digging into the table that they are seated at. He feels his breathing rapidly increasing for a few moments, but he lets out a deep sigh before answering the question.

“No you dipshit, I want to face her because she proved me wrong. Something I am sure that you have no clue about have you?? Of course you don’t, that’s why you write for a fucking second rate dirt sheet and will never see the light of day don’t you?”

The man wants to react, but Goth already has gotten to his feet. Throws some money upon the table to cover the cost of his expenses before walking off without saying a word. He does not even hear the begging remarks from the interviewer as he sets foot outside of the restaurant while closing the jacket that he had grabbed from the coat rack and walks across the streets. He takes in the scenery, smiling as he cherishes moments like this as he is capable to walk the streets without being recognized. But he quickly gets into his car as he knows that this moment will not last long as he gets into his car.

“What a relief….,”
He says as he enters the key into the ignition and starts the engine of the car, feeling the many horse powers howling from underneath the hood in front of him before hitting the gas pedal and drives off. Looking forward to hit the highway, allowing his hair to move freely after undoing the ponytail that he had tied up earlier. He wants to feel free while thinking about what is next, the match that should have been for the Xtreme championship that has turned into a match of honor. A match of who can maim the other the most inside of a structure that will ultimately make you suffer in pain.

He thinks about the last few matches Atara had endured since winning the Xtreme championship, violent matches that Goth could appreciate from a wrestler that knows the consequences that comes along with winning a championship belt like that without complaining about the ramifications that comes along by being the Xtreme champion of this company.

It had reminded him of himself when he was much younger than he is right now, he had never cared about what it would do to your body after enduring a large part of his career while competing in hardcore or extreme type of matches. He has been in cage matches, hell in a cell matches, thumbtacks, being hit by weapons or even having your knees crushed against steel steps too many times. And yet he had never complained about any of that, as that would have seen as nothing but excuses of not being able to compete at the highest level but never want to get hurt. He is one of those old school wrestlers, pain is part of the game is something that he would tell any aspiring and talented wrestler from the moment that they want to get some of advice.

“I wonder who had listened to a beaten down vet like me.”

He smirks as he turns the car around the corner, realizing that he is only a few more minutes away from hitting the highway and crank up the speed on his car. He had turned down the window at his side of the car, feeling the wind blow through his hair as he leans his left arm upon the opening of the car door while smiling as he watches the cars vanish in front of him. He hits the gas pedal even more, speeding up but making sure that he would not exceed the speeding limits. He may be a fan of speed, but not of any speeding tickets. A few more cars are being overtaken by him as he notices the sign that reads San Antonio, Texas. A smile emerges upon his face, remembering how he always enjoyed wrestling in Texas and especially San Antonio. His first world title in the Global Wrestling Alliance was won in this same city, creating a special bond with that city as he always enjoyed coming back towards it. He gave a command to dial up an old friend of his from the wrestling business that has long retired many years ago, a man that nowadays lives in San Antonio, Texas.

“Hello??”

A voice can be heard as it comes from the speakers on either side of his seat, a voice that he had not heard in many years.

“Hello Marvin…,”

Goth says with a smile upon his face, he knew that the man that once was known as Metamania hated that name.

“What do you want Gerrit??”

Says a slightly annoyed voice, but Goth could tell that deep down inside that the man on the other side of the phone line would be laughing about it later.

“Hey Mete, I am about to head back to San Antonio. I was wondering if you would like to hook up and watch a Spurs game any time soon??”

There’s some silence on the other end of the line.

“You do know that they stink right now right??”

Goth can’t help but smile, he had been following the NBA for many years and he knew that the championship aspirations of the five-time NBA champs are nowhere near as they were 8 years ago. But he did not care, he was a fan and wanted to see his old friend.

“Are you telling me that you don’t want to see me anymore??”

He could hear the chuckle on the other end of the line, both men knew that he was only kidding.

“Sure thing partner, but only if you make sure that I get a good seat this Wednesday for Warfare.”

This brought a smile upon Goth’s face, clearly his old rival had been following his career to this very day even after being retired.

“Sure thing buddy, I will get you a backstage pass and we could hang out together like old times.”

The two share a private conversation before Goth hangs up the phone, he liked to meet with some old friends and talk about the old days. Bringing up memories while sharing a laugh and a tear, realizing that sometimes he wished that everything would have stayed the same…. And yet, he realizes that doesn’t count for everything.

“We are close to meet again Atara….,”[/b

Says Goth as he stares ahead of him, the highway seems to be a long line that seems to never end, he has driving on this road a million times and it never gold old. He remembers the days that he and his deceased wife shared a car or were driven by a limo to this wonderful city and share some wonderful moments together. But that’s behind him now, he cannot allow himself to only think about the past and not to allow him to focus upon the future.

[b]“Funny how things change doesn’t it?? I know I have said some things that you didn’t like, things that got blown out of proportions…. Not saying that I didn’t deserve to be called out by it, but that’s all part of the game isn’t it?? I guess it lit a fire underneath you that ultimately secured you that championship win. Congrats Atara, you sure as hell deserved it… But you have to admit, it was close wasn’t it??

“Now I am not the type of wrestler that would utter the delusional words of What if… and I could have won ot…. Or even to bring out the most delusional statement of them all, you know the one where I would be saying that I should have won that belt instead of you??”

He shakes his head, enjoying the wind blowing through his hair as he lifts his left hand upwards and leans it against the side of his head for a while.

“I’m the type of guy that believes that I am better than anyone else in this industry, can you blame me?? I’ve been doing this for twenty years and remain relevant because I am capable of beating anyone in this fine sport of ours, doesn’t mean that I will win every single one of them. Yet I am also the type of guy that believes that nobody can beat me, until you prove me wrong. And you did Atara, you have beaten me in a match that people talk about to this very day. And I compliment you for showing me that you are more than merely the assumption of being an extra.”

“Just like you have been showing on all of the title defenses, that you are willing to put everything on the line and sacrificing your body for what you believe in. I respect that, because it shows me that you are someone that is part of what I like to call of a dying breed. I have been from an era where you wouldn’t survive unless you could endure exactly that what you had gone through as of late, because we had no time to toughen someone up in order for that person to make it through another 24 hours, let alone an entire career. But I guess things have changed throughout the years haven’t they?? But that won’t keep those of the same breed like us from continuing on and do what we do best, outlasting those who are not like us…..”

“I know that if people have no clue about what I am talking about and merely assume I am discriminating people because of whatever reason, that’s upon you people. Because I only know one kind of breed of wrestlers, people like you and me Atara. People that are willing to dive into a deep and dark pit, block out any kind of pain and emerge once more after the sacrificial lamb has been burned upon the altar so that we can move on. I know graphic to those who are of the weakened heart….”

He slowly lowers his hand from his face and places it on the steering wheel along with his right hand, he is barely taking notice of any of the other vehicles that he passes while heading to his destination of San Antonio, Texas. He looks into his rear view mirror and stares at the man who has the microphone close to him in order for everyone to hear what he is saying.

“I hope you are not going to be expecting me to make that same mistake again do you? I may be the guy that admits when defeated, but I am also the type of guy that enters a match once more in order to undo the mistakes that I myself have made in our first confrontation. Because deep down inside I know that every other match is one that stands upon its own Atara. I can look you into your eyes and am able to tell whether you are that same individual that you were when you beat me for that title. And I don’t care if you are going to tell me the obvious words of of course you are… I don’t care, because words like that are meaningless just like being referred to a second rate actor that should be kissing the ground that the leading star walks on. No Atara, I may not be the one that will walk out being the next Xtreme Champion, but that doesn’t change the fact that I wish to sink my teeth into how good you truly are right now my dear. The wife of a legendary figure in this company, oh Goodie… It’s always wonderful to once again confront a standard bearer that has helped this company to become what it is today, but does that scare me?? Oh no, I relish this confrontation just as much as I did when I had outdone Chronic Chris Page in a Legend vs. Legend match. Another name that I could take off my wrestling bucket list of those who I wish to face and beat. Making the run that I have had in this company over the last month so enticing to continue to turn heads… Or were you going to tell me that I got lucky every single time?? Luck is what you make of it, luck is what you force upon yourself and upon another to gain that advantage over the other. Your win was what you have made out of it Atara, that’s why I challenged you. I wanted to get into the ring with you and dance the dance of death one more time…. Because of showing my respect towards you, merely by beating you from within an inch of your existence. That’s what truly matters isn’t it?? That’s what separates us the real good from those who prefer to chase a gorilla. I welcome the opportunity to stand across the ring with you one more time… To make magic one more time and see whether I will earn your respect as you have earned mine…..”

He turns his gaze towards the camera man and signals for him to cut it as the shot goes dark.