David/Knives Colab Piece

[David Sanchez]

I know we've got the week off guys but we thought we'd fill the gap with some character development stuff, we'll just be going post for post in this thread. Feedback for either of us, as always is appreciated

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Home is Where the Heart is

The large oak and mahogany door to their home swings open at Sammantha’s touch while David follows a few paces behind, their sleeping son in his arms, exhausted from a lengthy trip back from Japan. With the residence unlocked, David kisses his son on the forehead, strokes his finger through his jet black hair and places him into the welcoming arms of his mother who ventures into the renovated property, cradling her cub like a fierce and protective lioness. Her steps are quiet as she heads towards Kayden’s bedroom, looking to get him off to sleep whilst David retrieves the luggage from the car. Moving a little gingerly, clearly still feeling the effects of his triumphant encounter with Teo Del Sol on Sunday, the Plague grunts as he hauls both adult cases out of the trunk of their car, taking one in each hand before dragging them up the driveway and through the doorway, setting them down in the vast hallway that branches off in every conceivable direction. Returning to the car now he takes his son’s miniature suitcase in one hand, using the other to slam the trunk shut and lock the car with an electronic key device which obliges with an obedient beep.

Back in the house Sammantha walks back down the stairs, her beauty un-phased by the long flight and tedious airport rigmarole. She brushes her hand across David’s back and purrs something sentimental to the man she married as he passes her, setting the tiny case down next to the two larger ones. With their belongings now safely inside their Orange County mansion, their son sound asleep in bed and the whir of an air conditioning unit breaking the comfortable silence they share a gaze, David’s a little strained as he smiles due to the fresh lacerations on his face. The door is gently pushed shut and locked by the matriarch of clan Sanchez, even in this elegant neighborhood you could never be too careful after dark, and dark had fallen while they were still fighting to escape the terminal.

“Home sweet home.”

David’s words are simple and honest. They had both missed the comfortable life they had earned through equal parts hard work and exploitation of opportunity. Sammantha greets his statement with a knowing smile as she unzips her knee high boots, the drop in her height quite remarkable as she feels the hardwood floor beneath her bare feet and lets out a sigh of relief. They both take a moment to breathe in the familiarity, Sammantha heading towards the sitting room whilst her husband clutches at his ribcage a little, the pain of Ultimate Showdown still raw in his bones. Following suit, he carries his damaged body down the hall, Knives’ sweet perfume leading him directly to the leather couch where they had spent many an evening cuddled up watching a film or discussing a vast array of topics.

Samm allows her man a kiss on the cheek, just a peck mind, before she motions for him to sit down and heads towards the little corner bar they had installed all those years ago. Lifting out a bottle of eighteen year aged Balvenie malt whiskey she pours a generous measure into a crystal tumbler and drops three cubes of ice from the little chest freezer behind the bar into it. She swirls the tumbler a few times in her palm and gives the drink to David who has just managed to get comfortable when she presents him with the best gift she has given him since the birth of their son; the sweet relief of Scottish goodness.

“I fucking love you. Have I ever told you that?”

He speaks with a pain in his voice, struggling to breathe a little between words but smiling as the drink meets his lips, then the ice, then the pain becomes a dull and distant memory, like the name of a neglected childhood pet.

“Maybe once or twice, that doesn’t mean I get tired of hearing it though.”

The cheeky tone in her voice brings a further smile to David’s face, even more so as she sticks her tongue out at him and begins to pour her own poison; a subtle measure of rum with a splash of coke from the mini-fridge which stands next to the small freezer. Taking a delicate sip from the glass she smacks her lips together a little and joins her husband on the couch, both of them setting their drinks down on the glass table in front of them before Knives places her head on David’s chest gently so as not to further disturb his injuries and drapes his arm over her shoulder, wrapping it tightly around herself like a scarf.

“It’s the little things in life that mean the most. I’m exhausted, my ribs are killing me and if I ever see another phoney Mexican it’ll be too soon. Right here though, in this moment. I feel better than words could possibly describe.”

“I know what you mean honey, it’s been a long day. On that note though we might need to fire the gardener.”

They share a laugh for a few moments before David stretches forward, holding Samm’s head to his chest with one hand whilst he grabs his glass with the other, deciding instead to rest his beverage on the arm of the chair instead to save any future strenuous activity. Noticing the pain that laughter has caused her husband, Samm giggles a little more before running her fingers over his thigh in a sympathetic fashion to show that despite her teasing she means well, she always did where he was concerned. Had it not been for her distraction and blinding of Del Sol with a handful of powder on Sunday, the outcome may have been different. This was something they both knew to be true, but that’s just how it was between them. Fighting one of them meant fighting them both, this much had never, and would never change. Those winning paycheques were needed to finance the lifestyle they were accustom to and above all else, neither could sit idly by why the other suffered.

The peaceful silence in the room is clouded with an air of mystery and this suddenly descends on David like a falling piano. His expression turns to worry, hidden from his wife as her face nuzzles into his chest he shifts his eyes around the room a little before draining the contents of his glass, allowing the ice cubes to clatter against his teeth then clink as they fall back into the base of the glass. Knives’ instincts seem to pick up on something as David shudders from the large quantity of alcohol he has just ingested in a single gulp, because before she can even turn towards him, the words have already left her mouth.

“What’s wrong sweetheart?”

David pauses for a second, as though he doesn’t actually know what the problem is quite yet but has merely discovered the planted seeds from which a problem will sprout. He clears his throat as Samm sits up in her chair, her eyes now fixated on his, their emerald tint melting his icy heart as she repeats the motion of running her fingernails over the top of his thigh.

“What the fuck do we do now? I hadn’t really thought this far ahead. I got so caught up in cracking that idiot's skull that I never bothered to think what I would do when it was over.”

Knives smiles again, this always seemed to put him at ease. She brushes off the problem with a flick of her hair and settles back into his chest, leaving David confused. For a moment the silence becomes awkward but it does not last long as she puts him out of his misery and answers in a soft voice that gets more intense as it reaches the end of her sentence and the scene fades out with David smiling up at the ceiling. His worries replaced with the simple knowledge that she always knew exactly what to say when he was having an emotional crisis.

“You get back out there and do what you do David; you win. As for me, I get back in the gym and step up the training, actually, I wanted to talk to you about that...”

[ladyknives]

P a r a n o i d - A n d r o i d  

“Yes, of course love. What do you want to talk about?” His voice was soft, and relaxed. He was like butter in her eager hands.

It was always an enjoyable moment when she was curled up on her husband like a drunk kitten, kneading his thigh to show she was pleased but to also show him she was comfortable, and that he should be the same. Of course, he was, but since she knew his addiction was something he was falling back into, she would exploit that a little if she could, for the greater good of course.

Painkillers and a little alcohol were always a good numbing agent for the aches and pains of a victorious warrior returned home, and it would also help him to help her, tonight. She needed to see how much she had improved without actually entering the ring yet. That would help her mentally and physically gauge where she was at. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a baggy with prescription painkillers: tramadol hydrocodeine, his favorite.

As much as she would normally cringe at the idea of handing him a baggie full of these, there were only enough there for him to help her tonight, and be able to feel okay the next day. She had gotten them at one of the many pharmacies overseas. When you have money, you have access to just about anything, anywhere you need it.

“Sweet lover of mine...” She cooed softly, gazing up at him. The pills were kept from his knowledge for a moment with sleight of hand, but soon were revealed to him. She looked him in the eyes, watching as they lit up and focused on the pills in the plastic before looking her back in her eyes.

“Please help me tonight. I know we just got back, and I know you are sore, but I am itching worse than you know to fight...please...” She purred.


“I will make it up to you in any way you like, promise..” The kneading of the thigh became her hand sliding across the junction of his jeans and pressing in the best of the worst teasing gestures.

“Mmph.” He grunted, acknowledging very firmly where her hand was.

The Demoness noted how her lover's breathing stuttered when she released the pressure from his groin. This made her smile, but her smile grew when she saw his lips curling as mischievous as her thoughts had increasingly become since assisting him ringside. This night would be like taking a trip back in time, and she would enjoy every moment of it.

“You've provided the tools necessary, so I don't see why not...” His voice remained low, although he were turning back into that beast she met four years ago; she liked it. Samm could see the fire in his eyes flicker and glimmer, and she would continue to feed the flame.

She would embrace the whole situation to be at peace, and hope that he was really okay with this, and that she was not damaging his psyche but sort of...nurturing it in her own way. Being closer to him was what she wanted, and she couldn't get much closer than fighting alongside him in the same Federation. This was the way she had to get there, no looking back now. His grip on her body tightened, it was his nonverbal signal that he was okay with this, mostly because it was his guilty pleasure. Her and it.

“Let us begin...” She yipped with excitement.

Knives slipped out of his tight grip by wiggling a little and urging herself forth. She walked over to their mini fridge and bar area and made him another drink, this time in a taller glass. He watched her every movement closely, eyes burning hotter and hotter as each moment passed. Returning, she sat across his lap and made herself comfortable. She smiled and handed him the drink, taking two pills out of the bag and putting them to his lips. He let them slip behind his lips quickly and downed them with a swig of whiskey to follow.

The burn was sweet, because this sin was administered by his lover, the one who he had hurt under the influence of these things in the past. For some reason she had the utmost confidence that he wouldn't come close this time around: it was a much different situation than it had ever been. She finished her own drink, only needing one or two more to get her to where she needed to be.

As soon as she stood up, David's hand laid the smacketh down upon her behind, and he released a yeowl that might have matched her earlier yip of excitement. She squealed and giggled, hopping back over to the bar and making herself a shortcut to where she needed to be: two double shots of Sailor Jerry's Rum and a cup of coke to chase it. She downed these one at a time, taking a little time in between to admire the battle wound her champion had sustained during his match. For some reason she had always found it hot when he was all beat up like that, it increased the feeling that he was there to protect her, which made desire flare like a wildfire.

Speaking of fire, her cheeks were very flushed at this point, and her face felt aflame, just like his eyes. At this point their souls were to catch fire as well, for when she returned this last time she engaged him in a kiss that would remind him of the first. In the time she had taken her drinks, he had nearly finished his, leaving the process nearly complete. She tried to disengage, but was pulled closer and held roughly in a playful gesture to get her to submit.

'Playing games already...' Samm thought. She bit his lip softly and went limp in his embrace, just like he wanted. He pulled away, and she had felt him smiling before the kiss was even over. Yes, she let him win this time. It was all apart of the game.

“Get changed and meet me in the gym in 5...I'll be waiting.” She cooed, sliding from his lap and heading toward their room to do just what she had instructed him.

She was so anxious to begin she dressed quicker than he could follow her to the room and beat him to their personal gym. It consisted of a weight room, which was side by side with a room full of their favorite machines. It was set up in quadrants. The whole floor was padded so sparring could be done anywhere if desired, but they had a sparring ring installed when they had the place built to fill up the third quadrant.

Chewing absently on the mouth guard she had grabbed on the way to the gym, she stared at herself in the full-wall length mirror that covered 3/4ths of the entire gym. Her hair was tied and pinned back messily, she didn't care about that. She wanted to take and land some blows.

He came waltzing in after a few minutes of her warming up in the ring, and she was still chewing on that mouth guard like a rabid animal. David seemed pretty nonchalant, popping his mouth guard in and getting into a prepared stance in front of her. His plan seemed clear to her after a muffled:

“Ding ding!” came from behind her pink mouth guard.

He went in for a traditional grapple and she fell in towards him to do the same. Her force was of no use, he had deceived her; the next thing she knew she felt her legs being kicked from beneath her and she landed hard on her ass on the mat. David chortled a bit and Knives growled in frustration. That was the worst way to start this for her, on her ass. He didn't take his eyes off of her and got back into stance, awaiting her retaliation. When the first few of her punches were slapped heavily and almost slowly away, she growled with fury. Why was he so nonchalant about this? He must have been doing it on purpose. It had been a long time since he had the opportunity to mess with her on this scale, so she was his victim for as long as he could make her so.

It wasn't going to be for much longer because she was already beginning to tire of his antics. This was his usual thing, but it had been such a long time since she had done any sort of sparring with him, he had become even dirtier than before. She liked that. It kept things interesting. Getting denied wasn't satisfying, and she was beginning to succumb to rage. Perhaps that's what she needed to push herself past the breaking point. He was fresh out of a fight, so his overall composure was better than hers, yes, but he was slacking on purpose, she could tell.

'I'll teach him to go easy on me...' She thought to herself, allowing herself to take a light-handed blow to the side of the face.

She fell back, ducking low to stabilize herself as she gazed up at him with not hate in her eyes but a challenging glare. Knives sprinted forward at him, watching him smirk at her bold move. At what seemed the last minute he extended both of his arms, catching, stopping, and grabbing both of her shoulders before shoving her backwards towards the ropes. She grunted, seeming prone as she bounced off the ropes.

Using the force of being hit to her advantage, she added in her own momentum and pushed harder into the ropes, propelling herself forward at a speed her champion would not anticipate. He would probably put his arm up for an arm bar of some sort to send her to the mat, but she wasn't looking, just doing. She ran at him with the most malicious smirk on her pale lips, her fangs glistening just as much as the sheen of sweat which started to form droplets across her skin.

The lights would flash in front of his widened cerulean eyes as she let her legs spring her off the mat, coming at him in a starfish spin through the air, left leg shooting out to make contact with the side of his face. He had realized only before it was too late that she was enacting his own finisher move on him, a running yakuza kick. It was planted as purposefully as she could make it, and she heard him grunt, growl, and groan after hitting the boards. She could tell that he was hazy and still recovering from his most recent match, but she wasn't necessarily expecting to plant that kick so hard.

The demoness' cheeks were flushed with embarrassment and a pure rush, really. After landing, recovering and taking a moment she shuffled to David's side. He was curled on his side, hands cupping his face for a moment before letting it fall to show her a slightly swollen right side.

“Mmm...honey. I'm sorry.” Knives spoke softly, laughing only once or twice under her breath, incredulous about landing that kick.

“As I said, I will repay you tonight, double for that kick baby..”

“Not even mad...” He laughed softly as well, taken aback by that last attack.

“But quadruple payment will be accepted for that atrocity committed to my already pummeled face, lover...So come to bed showered and naked, those are my only instructions...so far.”

“Very easy demands, my champion.” She purrs at him, helping his heavy body up from the mat and kissed him sweetly on the lips and all over his face.

“I will be there soon, go ahead and shower, get the lights down low and relax, but don't fall asleep, or I will tie you up...” She winked, gently giving him a push in the direction of the exit. He subdued to her suggestion, treading to their room with a new, unexpected soreness.

Knives slid out of the ring under the bottom rope, boots landing firmly on the ground and hands lightly gripping the side of the octagon-shaped ring. She smiled to herself, thinking back to those widened blue eyes and the look of pure disbelief before her foot made contact with his face. It was priceless. She was almost sure he would never allow her to land a blow like that on him again, but she was glad she did it while she had the chance. Slowly, lost in her own thoughts, she approached the water fountain and started to take a drink. Her eyes came to rest in her own gaze in her reflection, piercing, dilated pupils floating on fierce yellow-green irises. She stepped away from the water fountain where she could analyze her reflection in a full body view.

Most women did this on a daily basis, but the way she was critiquing her body was not about looking 'skinny enough' or having a 'thigh gap' or having the biggest most perkiest or voluptuous tits, it was about looking strong and healthy. Healthy didn't mean having tanned skin if you were pale, even though most other wrestlers she associated with and knew of spray tanned and such on a regular basis. She was pale, but that's because raising a child has you indoors for the first few years, but Kayden was thankfully starting to like the outdoors more. Was it right for her to be returning to the ring after dedicating herself fully to motherhood for the last four years?

Yes it was. To remain healthy in body, spirit, and mind, she had to exercise on a regular basis and spend time with David doing something they both really loved doing. She remembered having so much fun, even though losses were humiliating, the wins were what kept her coming back. It would be good for Kayden to become more independent from both her and David. He was used to David being away for these last few months, but hadn't been away from Knives for extended periods of time yet besides hours or maybe a day or two at a time at gramma and grandpa's or with a babysitter.

Her anxious eyes traced her form, from shoulders down to biceps and forearms and hands. She didn't feel like they were strong enough. The sweat burned her eyes a little, blurring her vision and causing her to wipe her eyes with the back of her hand. The alcohol burned in her belly along with the desire to fight. More. She wanted more. Maybe she would ask him for more tomorrow. Maybe...maybe it would be too much for now.

A small core circuit would do for now to burn off that extra energy. She would do 5 or 10 sets of butterfly kicks, leg lifts, core twists, sit ups, push ups. Each item she performed meticulously in mechanical form, eyes stuck on her reflection. Her face was a blank slate, as though she were some android performing a programmed regiment. In fact she began to see herself as one in the reflection, clammy, pale skin simulating perspiration, labored breathing and flushed cheeks. Jointed limbs bending, artificial muscles tensing and relaxing. The phantom sensation of feeling her entire body work caused her to shudder and stop what she was doing. What a paranoid machine she was. A sentient being set to criticize herself at every turn for efficiency now. This feeling made her glad the pressure was coming from herself and not David, otherwise she might have been less inclined. Sometimes, she was a bitch like that.

The reps were enough to make her winded, and desire a hot shower and a ravaging from her bleeding champion. She headed to the shower connected to the gym's small locker room with spa and saunas, stripping on her way there. This was her favorite thing to do after a work out, it was so empowering. It was like getting naked at the gym, but no one was watching, so it was better that way. She turned the knobs and adjusted the heat to scorching. It was the best to emerge from the hot shower into the cold of the room and really feel your entire body in that moment. Your body knows the cold, and starts to make adaptions as such. She showered routinely and quickly, not wasting any more time since she burnt off that extra steam.

As she stepped out of the shower she felt a half-clothed body press to hers and heavy arms wrap around her, squishing her arms and breasts together tightly. She yelped and struggled helplessly in his embrace. He scooped her up in his arms and gazed into her eyes.

“You are taking too long woman...What's the hold up? You owe me!” He growled, burying his face into her neck and carrying her wet, dripping body back to their room.


He laughed cruelly at her protests of being freezing cold on the way there and her pathetic attempts to escape were met with his ruthless forearm grip. After swiftly entering their room and closing the door he let her slide onto the soft sheets, watching as she turned around and gazed at him with back arched and hair falling over her breast like ebony silk. He crawls toward her and the scene fades to black.

[David Sanchez]

Breakfast of Champions

When the camera regains focus we find ourselves in the bedroom, the large mattress that takes center stage is empty on one side whilst the other is occupied by a lonely pair of feet protruding from a bundle of bed sheets. There is a slight movement under the covers so it becomes all but obvious that there is still somebody at least attempting to sleep, however successfully though remains a mystery. The smell of woman’s shower gel joins the splashing of a shower to fill the other senses while this mysterious heap of humanity continues to move a labored manner.

“Fucking, ooouch!”

A disgruntled noise of pain breaks the soothing sound of running water and all of a sudden David’s head sticks out from the top end of the covers, pulling himself up in bed so that his back now rests parallel to the headboard. His eyes are pinned from drug-use, one of them blackened by factors other than the match he had just endured. The kick, her boot had hit him with such a force that their training session the previous evening was cut short. He stretches out his arms and legs with further noises of agony, dropping one of his arms across his ribcage again, seemingly holding his ribs as though his thorax may detach from the rest of his body like some sort of insect. With a quick look to his right at the vacant space on their bed where Sammantha had occupied recently, his mind becomes cloudy with wonder as to where she has went. Instantly though this thought is answered as the muffle of sleep is lifted and he can hear somebody showering in the en suite bathroom which attaches to their bedroom. Groaning his dis-comfort, David peels the covers from himself and reveals the top half of his chiseled physique, complete with the trademark tattoo of a black rose on his ribcage, the same side of his ribcage which he had injured in Japan. Fumbling with the drawer in his bedside cabinet he reaches inside, pulling out a thin strip of tablets. More painkillers, he thought it best to ingest these before his wife returned from the shower, lest he suffer the wrath of her judgemental looks. She wasn’t completely against his taking of these things, when he was actually in pain, but his addictive personality had only recently toned back down to prescribed substances Popping two pills into the palm of his hand and returning the packet to the drawer before closing it tightly, he holds them up in front of his face. Examining them as he rolls them around in his hand with an index finger he studies, their green and yellow shell, the inscription of the letters T and X make it all but obvious to pharmaceutical aficionados that yes, these are his breakfast of choice; two five-hundred milligram capsules of tramadol hydrocodeine. He places the two pain relief agents on his tongue and takes a sip of the now lukewarm glass of water he had placed on his bedside table the previous evening, swallowing the solution with a gulp, a wretch and an expression of disgust.

“Do you want me to leave the shower running for you David?”

Knives’ voice echoes from the bathroom and meets his ears with a pleasant reminder that she is a crucial pillar in his life. The fleeting emptiness he feels when she is not around is as paralyzing as the mythical Medusa’s gaze from which he models his finishing move of the same name. Just as he begins to drag the rest of his body into mobility, kicking the covers from his legs and planting his feet upon the ground though another noise is heard; tiny, hurried footsteps.

“Better just turning it off gorgeous, Kayden’s on the move.”

David’s response is swift enough that Sammantha is able to hastily switch off the water and slam the door from the bedroom to their private facilities closed, having previously left it ajar incase David wished to join her in the shower. A nice idea but you’d think they would have learned with almost five years having passed since they last had the house to themselves. Kayden bursts through the bedroom door in a pair of indigo pyjamas, charging at his father and tackling him back onto the ground, David’s playful side allowing him to do so. Knives’ smiles from the bathroom as she hears the two most important people in her life playing together whilst she wraps a towel around her luscious body and another around her soaking, black hair in that special way that only a woman can. David never understood how that was done, the sheer dynamics involved were mesmerizing. Kayden bounces on his father’s stomach, then onto the bed where he springs on the mattress a few times before delivering the cutest little elbow drop the world has ever seen into his father’s chest. Selling the hit, the patriarch pretends to go prone as his son tries to lifthis leg and gain a pinfall. One. Two, kick-out. David bursts to his feet with his son in his arms, tossing him over his shoulders and into a fireman’s carryas he giggles uncontrollably, charging out of the bedroom and down the hall with his son’s weight resting comfortably on his shoulders. Parenting one-oh-one. Taking it in shifts. He scales down the stairs, through another hallway and dumps Kayden onto the couch gently with a Samoan drop, both of their bodies landing comfortably upon the leather. This should give her long enough to get clothes on and perform all those other feminine tasks he didn’t quite comprehend. It was a tactic they’d been working on for years, once Knives was ready she would come downstairs and tag in, allowing David to disappear and perform his own morning rituals.

“Not fair dad, take your hits, I got you with an elbow drop!”

Kayden struggles to get these words out through his childish laughter but David spreads his arms out whilst maintaining the position, ultimately preventing his son from moving whilst being careful not to actually hurt him. His shoulders were down though. One. Two. Three. Another heroic victory for the Last King of Wrestling, David Sanchez. His son squirms and wriggles until David shifts his weight onto the floor in front of the couch, reaching forward and grabbing the television remote, jamming a few buttons as the sixty-five inch, four-K, curved screen bursts into life from the wall facing them. The curvature of the Samsung screen surrounds them in a sea of colourful cartoons, this one in particular was Kayden’s favorite. An animated dog who solves mysteried with his blatant stoner friend some other tired clichés. They had raised him with the classics, today’s cartoons were not much more than mind-numbing drivel. Almost hypnotized by the images on screen Kayden falls into silence as he pushes himself as close to the television as David deems will not damage his retinas, still probably closer than his mother would allow but in truth, their son had learned from her exactly how to get his way from dear old dad.

Satisfied now that Kayden is suitably distracted, David pushes himself from the couch with a clutch at his side, still waiting for the painkillers to take effect. He walks gingerly back down the hall and into the kitchen where he flips a simple switch on the coffee machine which churns into life, filling a glass pot with Arabica as he pulls two cups from a mug-tree, one for himself and one for Sammantha. He flips a large switch next to the cooker and an extractor fan bursts into life as the grill portion of this industrial oven lights up. Letting his thoughts drift to days in the future when he would need to make three javas in the mornings instead of just two, wondering if Kayden would be a coffee drinker or one of those tea-lovers he detested so. Those days, he thought, were too far away to be thinking of just yet, the kid barely drank anything except apple juice.

“Kayden, what do you want for breakfast?”

The sound of silence would be deafening if not for the wacky hijinks being omitted from the television. David pauses for a second, giving his son the benefit of the doubt. He knows he has shouted loud enough to be heard. His son’s ignorance weighing on him he repeats himself, in a louder more strict tone.

“Kayden! What do you want for your breakfast? If I have to come through there I’m turning the television off and you won’t be going to grandma’s house today.”

At these threats the same hurried footsteps from before come rushing towards David once more. Kayden appears at the kitchen door and makes a shy request, one which he knows will not be granted.

“Cookies?”

“Try again.”

“Bacon. Bacon and pancakes.”

“That’s my boy.”

David beams a smile at his son now and motions for him to go back to his cartoons whilst he pours a first cup of coffee. No milk, no cream and certainly no sugar. He was sweet enough, he thought sarcastically to himself. Hearing Knives now making her way down the stairs he pours the second. She swings into the living room first, running her hands through her son’s hair and moving him back almost three feet from the television which by this point he was practically nosing up against. She then ventures through to the kitchen and purrs softly as David slips the roasting cup of coffee into her hand, inhaling the fragrant aroma of the Arabian beans and letting out a breath of sheer pleasure.

“I know right? Real fucking coffee.”

David smiles at her from behind his own cup which he is sipping at with such passion you would think he had never before felt its warming sensation. He sets it down on the breakfast bar as Knives takes a seat before opening the refrigerator and tearing open a pack of smoked bacon rashers and sets them down next to the massive cooker. Pulling a tray from the grill he covers it in foil, then lubricates it with olive oil, spreading the liquid across the full length of the tray. He walks over to the sink, washes his hands and returns to his breakfast project peeling the packet of bacon apart and laying the strips down individually. He shoves the tray back under the grill and leaves the door ajar slightly, turning to Knives as he does so, having caught his reflection in the reflective glass door of the oven. He smiles cheekily at her, pointing at the latest battle scar on his face, the black-eye she had surprised him with during training the previous evening.

“I did tell you I’d been training my dear.”

“You didn’t tell me you’d be trying to kick my face in, my dear”

There is a sarcastic tone to the end of sentence which causes them to smile at each other for a few seconds before David breaks the calm. Their conversation being masked from Kayden’s innocent ears by the comical sounds of Scooby, Shaggy, Fred, Daphne and Velma trying to piece together another mystery.

“What’s the plans for today then?”

“Well my dear, the day is up to you. Your parents are picking the little dude up in an hour or so. I thought we could head down to Newport Pier tonight, but not until it starts getting dark. So anything you want to do today is fine by me. Just let’s keep the sparring to a minimum, I’d like to give my injuries a day to heal without adding any fresh ones to the fold.”

Sammantha laughs at this sympathetically, approaching her husband and running her fingers gently across the bruising around his left eye.

“Look on the bright side. That was only one kick. Imagine how poor Teo must look today.”

It is David’s turn to laugh now, a massage of his ego was always something he enjoyed, after-all it had taken several of his own Yakuza kicks to keep Mr Sunshine down.

“Well bright eyes. The bacon’s cooking, the kid wants pancakes and there’s a fresh pot of coffee. I’m going to go get showered and
shaved, maybe borrow some of your make-up to cover this shiner and start practicing my I walked into a door excuses. If you have a think about what you want to do, I’ll be ready in twenty minutes or so”

“Ha-ha-ha. Well maybe next time you won’t be so patronizing.”

“Next time sweetheart, I’ll have you in an armbar so fast and so tight that you’ll be begging to go through child birth again to distract you from the pain.”

 

Sammantha laughs at this, thankfully. It was a little too early in the morning to be pushing this kind of material in her direction. That’s just who he was though, a chancer.

“That sounds like a challenge to me, honey”

This time the sarcasm comes at the end of Samm’s sentence. It’s almost as though they are using pet-names like weapons to emotionally wound one another. David smiles at her, screwing his face up into a silly expression like a child might make before putting his dukes up in a mock attempt to challenge her to fisticuffs. She wastes little time in getting to her feet, retrieving a dishtowel and snapping it in his direction as she does so, David backing off a little at the first swipe, then retreating to the stairs on the second.

“Go wash, idiot”

She says this through breaks in laughter as David climbs the stairs backwards, not taking his eyes off her to prevent any sneak attacks. The scene fades out on their grand staircase as they continue to jokingly mock one another from their respective positions.

 

[ladyknives]

C h i l d ' s - p l a y 

The hour they had waited for the grandparents to get there seemed like nothing. The kid was entertained mostly by the Scooby Doo Marathon on TV while mom and dad got ready for their night out. Samm would find herself mesmerized by how the cartoon had changed over the years, and reflected back to the leaky Scooby head cup that she was bought from Six Flags Magic Mountain in one of the years of her youth. Which one, at this point it was too hard to remember. The mother Demoness was too busy making sure her own child's memories were going to be memorable for him, and not blocked out due to random traumatic happenings. So far, so good she would say. It was definitely a wild ride, raising a person, but they had been in such worse circumstances before, this was heaven for them both.



For the first time in a while they would get a little break from him and have some real time to talk about her return. No kicks in the face, either. She laughed to herself softly, approaching the freshly showered champion and caressing the bruise she painted upon the already scarred canvas of his chiseled face. Moving in closer she nuzzled her head into the curve of his neck, breathing in the dark, luscious citrus smell of the 'Noir' bath & bodyworks body wash. When she bought herself things, she would never forget to keep him in mind as well; another thing he wouldn't have to waste his time thinking about. It was another one of the small, subtle ways Knives let him know she loved him. The bliss of taking in his freshly showered aroma was cut short by the honking sound of her parents' car outside.



“Kayden! Gramma and Pop pop are here! Grab your backpack and Game Boy if you want. Don't forget the charger!”



She projected her voice across a few rooms to get to him, and heard him scurrying around to get his things and then pitter-pattering their way quickly across polished wooden floors and ornate oriental throw rugs. His small, pitch-headed form emerged skidding around the corner and flying at his parents with a goofy excited face. From this reaction, she knew they let him get away with murder while he was there, but that was fine, as long as he behaved upon his return and didn't have any cavities that Knives would have to pay for.



Green eyes met David's and she smiled, looking down at her son and petting him lovingly when he hugged her legs. David grabbed him up, backpack and all, and hugged him close, kissing his forehead and carrying him toward the door. Samm followed behind, waving at her parents from the door when she got there. As much as she loved her parents, especially since they were taking Kayden for a while, she wasn't in the mood for conversation, David would handle all that. She escaped back inside to get ready for tonight. Both parties would be taking part in some child's play tonight.



Knives felt that because she was about to get serious again, might as well take the time to be as not serious as possible, and have fun before the hard work, trash talk, and vanity began. It would be a complicated double-persona that she would have to learn to switch off around Kayden.



'Looking into a nanny might be a great idea...' She thought to herself, making herself a little nervous at the notion. Quickly she shook it off, and wondered what David had planned. This night was his idea, but she also had a few surprises of her own for him and her to explore.



“Let's go Daaaaaviddddd! I want ice cream!”



She whined at him, grabbing up her purse and the keys and tossing them at him playfully. Thankfully he caught them, which was not always the case. She had a bad habit of hitting him not so nice places with them when he wasn't paying attention, it was a way at getting back at him for whatever.



“For breakfast?” He raised an eyebrow at her, smiling at her with his eyes.



“Breakfast of champions son!” She ran over to David and hung on him from behind, easing him toward the door lovingly.


He backed up into her defiantly and pushed her against a wall playfully pinning her there. Her champion looked her in the eyes and kissed her on the cheek then the lips, then pulled away.



“Be right back.” He said. He returned moments later. Nothing she noticed was different, he must have just had to pee or something.



It was about 10:30am in the morning and it would take about 30 minutes to get to the beach and get settled. Not a long distance there in sunny Orange County California. All terrains were almost equidistant in separate directions of Costa Mesa and Newport Beach. East to the Desert, North to the Forest, South to San Diego and Baja, and West to the Ocean and the Snowy Mammoth and Big Bear mountains. No place like home indeed.



Once they arrived and parked up front, Knives swiped her Hello Kitty debit card on the parking meter. This was the worst part of the beach if you didn't find a convenient spot on the side streets close enough to walk. It was more of a problem Pre-Kayden, but now that the money flow was just regular from her other side-occupations, things were easier to afford. It would even be easier when they were both in regular matches. She grabbed her purse and beach bag from the backseat, smile bright and fangy as she looked at her other half.



“Excited, love?!” She giggled, swinging the beach bag over her shoulder and gazing out at the vast expanse of sand and fire pits to her right.



It made her recall warm nights before David's existence in her life, and it was nothing she missed. It was all very childish partying and things that accomplished nothing. Maybe she would suggest a bonfire later tonight, or maybe he would just read her mind and remember a time when she told him that story, or the many she probably told him over and over when she became nostalgic. That was all very romantic to think of, but she had no idea what he had in store for her tonight. She would just enjoy every moment she had with him before they would have to do business. Remembering the times before made her smile as they walked across the sidewalk and eventually onto the sand, making their way to an ideal spot. They were quite the Bonnie and Clyde, antagonistic duo, and weren't afraid to push boundaries. Samm hoped they would keep that up in this Federation and make some stains.



“For the water, yes, for the sand, no.”



His expression when mentioning sand made her laugh, she already knew sand was the worst thing about the beach, so brought a huge blanket to lay down, along with towels to lay on separate from the towels to dry with so you didn't have to use one for both. It was more comfortable this way, and she hoped that would alleviate the sand-bother threat.



Samm stopped at what she considered the best spot, for what reasoning Mr. Sanchez could not see. He believed her and assisted her in laying out the blanket. Wondering what this system was all about. Blanket and towels on top. It was impressive how she did everything like it was a routine that at some point she completed daily.



“It's to keep the sand off of us when we're done with the water, goof. You're looking at it with this focus. Is the sun draining you already sweet heart?”

She laughed a little, and David's stomach loosened. He was glad she hadn't asked him the routine question of if he was on pills.



“Just admiring your beach-going skills, sweetie.” He smirked. “And that ass...”



Both laughing, they stripped down to their bathing suits and got the pre-water ritual of soaking ones self in SPF of choice. She brought the spray kind so it would be fast and convenient. She sprayed him everywhere, rubbing him down in the front and looking him in the eyes charmingly while doing so.



“Turn around.” She said. He did so.



After finishing his lotion she handed him the can and he proceeded to spray her front and look her in the eyes with a sly wink as his hands slipped into her black-halter bikini cups and administered the sun screen as playfully as possible. She yipped a little and smacked his hands away once he was finished. He couldn't help himself when she was so oiled up. She headbutted his coconut scented chest and squinted her eyes at him, urging him to finish by presenting her back side now. After he was finished she leaned back into him, their lubricated arms sliding across one another as she entwined their fingers for a moment, then slipped out of the embrace.



She gripped his slippery hand and led him to the water, trotting quicker than he probably would have liked into the frigid saltwater. It started at the feet, stinging their toes and splashing up onto their calves. The sand below was wet and dark, littered with what looked like gold, but who knows what it might have been. It glittered and reflected off of their body in the sunlight, shining and shimmering in the splashing water as they pummeled through knee high waves. The water threw itself higher as she guided him deeper, looking back at him with the smile of a little girl as she drug him through the water, deeper yet.



Knives squealed and yipped the whole way through the waves, reacting by shuddering and squishing her breasts with her other arm as they were assaulted by the waves. He of course noticed their increasing firmness and laughed, using her arm to pull her back into his arms and into his chest. She slipped out of his grasp easily and he felt her swim between his legs before he had seen her dip below the surface. When she emerged from the water with a gasp and yeowl she did not see David above the surface and looked around panicked. He always messed with her bad when he could, this was probably one of those times.



When she felt hands on her thighs and a warm head between her legs and the water no longer on her body, she knew she had been correct. He lifted her up out of the water on his shoulders, waiting for the biggest wave he could while she objected and wiggled around. His forearm's iron grip on her thighs and hands holding her wrists kept her from escaping her newly dialed in fate, decided by her cruel yet loving husband. She begged him to let her go, but it was of no use. He laughed loudly, an evil, sexy laugh that she could never forget. Her laugh collided with his, but she was laughing out of nervousness and desperation that he would release her before this huge wave came. Nope! He threw her into the wave, his face contorted with laughter as he watched her flail pathetically and hit the wave.



The wave smacked him in the face, and reminded him that he needed to pay more attention from that point on. Knives emerged from the water, gasping as her eyes searched for David among the waves. She spotted him, bounding through the water after him. They had a few more bouts of horseplay before retiring to their towels to dry off and relax for a bit. The sun and wind balance on the beach today was just perfect enough to sweep the burn of the sun's rays off of your skin and cool you off just when you needed it.

- - - - - - - -  

After spending a few hours in the sun they got dressed and packed up. They eagerly dropped her beach bag off in the car and both changed into sandals. She led him to a quaint shop where you could rent beach cruisers. She wanted to ride them to the Newport Pier down the way a bit and take him to the arcade of her adolescence. They got one double-bike and laughed about it on the way out. It was bright blue, just like the sky with its cotton-candy fluffed clouds dragging lazily across the warm sky. They mounted it and made their way to the sister pier.



Her first job was at the Cold Stone Creamery on the corner right next to the Naval Museum and arcade. It was no longer there, and was now replaced with a Frozen Yogurt place run by a family. She was sure it was great, but she was more interested in visiting Balboa Bay Treats while they were there. Now that was a guilty pleasure. They parked on the sidewalk in front of the place, locking the bike up in front of the small Gyro stand build beneath the many buildings above on the deck-installation. It was on the only store besides the italian restaurant across the way from the Ferry line, which had amazing mozzarella sticks and homemade marina.



“Where are we going?”



He gazed around the baby-blue painted buildings, taking in the salty and fishy smell of the moist seaside air while following his lover. It was a bitter smell at first, but once you got used to it you didn't really smell it at all. When new gusts of wind would come in from the shore you would get refreshed with that shoreline smell, but it was pleasant at that point.



The answer to his question was now right in front of them. Kids ran in and out of the doors of the place, and you could hear the laughter and squealing of chitlins inside the establishment. It was a pretty small place, but they were very stacky about the way they organized their games and utilized all the space, even pillars. As soon as you came in the side they had, the price desk is on the left with an attendant looking bored until someone approached him.



“This is great. I can't remember the last time I was in a place like this. Makes me feel like a kid again..”



“That's the point, silly...Kid's can't have all the fun!”



Classic ski-ball lanes lined one of the walls of the place, but a quarter of that wall was also a game where you could shoot basketballs into hoops for tickets. Next to that were the coin-mover games, as well as the punching-bag game which caught David's attention. There was also two DDR machines, Time Crisis the double shooter, as well as House of the dead and a few other single shooter games of the sniping, rifle, and handgun varieties. Of course there was also the racing games, of water, cycle, and vehicle variety. There were also the stuffed animal machines, candy machines of the same kind, and the Whack-a-mole machine, as well as the ones where you stop the light at certain areas to get certain prizes.



Samm was happy to indulge in all of these wonderful games, loading the coin machines with a $20 and filling her purse and David's pocket with as many coins as possible. They agreed to split up first, tickling whichever childish craving they had before meeting up to play a few games of Time Crisis and House of the Dead. The Demoness was surprisingly good at the shooter games, which after a while made David want to switch to the DDR machines. While she was not so good at these, David seemed to enjoy them greatly. He was a show off by nature, so of course he would love it when she was there watching him bust a move to “Independent Woman” and work so hard he formed a sweat on his brow and temples. She leaned back and watched after a while, having no desire to sweat on that machine.



Many laughs were had, many tickets were won, and many fun, brightly colored, silly trinkets were won for Kayden. They had a whole plastic bag filled with doo-dads for the kid, so when he came back from his grandparents he would clock in to a gold mine and be amused for days, maybe weeks. He was at the age where most things were new and interesting to him, and little silly toys like this were a perfect daily distraction while the parents did more important things. They ended their night at the arcade by both doing the punching-bag machine. David first. She wondered who's face it was he was seeing on the red sack as he gave it quite a go with those sore fists. Teo maybe? Or someone else perhaps?



“Who's face are you seeing there, lover? That silly lucha lame-o?”



They both laughed.



“Yes, actually. Still fresh in my mind.”



“I'm starving honey, let's go get food, puh-leeeez!” She begged, pouting at him and hugging him around the neck. Kisses were planted all over his face and cheeks, and knee brought up between his legs to both tease and tempt him. He grunted and she laughed, lowering her leg and planting a big kiss on his lips.



“Yes, please.”



“Ice cream!!!”



The adventures of the day had made her work up an appetite, first it was to Balboa Bay treats for ice cream, then they would ride back to the Balboa pier for some Ruby's. It was evening now, about 7:30pm; the time had flown at the arcade, and she's sure they spent at least $60 in games alone so far. That made her smile. She was very glad that David was enjoying himself, she was wondering about him lately, he didn't often show when he was in emotional distress at first, but she could crack his shell after a while and diffuse his feelings back to a state of peace and calm.



They were both dressed semi-casual: Samm in a strapless black sun-dress that was decorated with golden stitched butterflies every once in a while on the material, and black sandals. Golden eyeshadow was splayed across her eyelids in all directions, pleasantly blended into a honey glow. It lit up her green eyes which adopted a blue ring on the inside around the pupil to suit her mood and the beauty of the blue moon tonight.



“I'm so glad we've had this day together. It's a great way to celebrate me coming back into the ring soon! We will have to have a party after my first match, win or lose, but we both know how that will go.” She smirked, winking at David and flashing him a fangy, foxy smile.


"I am too sweetie, we needed this kind of day, it's been too long."


Her obsidian hair was wave and wind tossed, each strand feeling thicker now after playing around in the salty water. Her eyeshadow was smeared a little bit, but she never paid mind to that anymore unless she was being paid to look pretty. The hair framed her sun-kissed face, cheeks warm from the sun's caressing rays on the sand. He couldn't help but run a hand over those warmed cheeks, his hands freezing from the arctic feeling air of the marine layer. She leaned into his hand, grabbing it and leading him toward the pier to walk down to the classic 50's style restaurant. Ruby's was the same color on the outside as it was on the inside, cream, silver, and chrome. The mascot was a busty, long legged waitress with black hair with styled straight across bangs, bright red lipstick and a cute pin-stripped red and white outfit on. She led them up to the doors, smiling as he grabbed the door and opened it for her, waiting for her to go in and then following after.

[David Sanchez]

Frosted Milkshakes and Lifted Clouds

www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8oNHMNCSjQ

Money Honey by Drifters featuring Clyde McPhatter tickles the audible sense as we re-join our couple of interest inside of Ruby’s diner, the noise coming from a tiny, table-top jukebox which David slips a nickel into as he stares lovingly at his wife. She was beautiful in her strapless black sundress which highlighted the now slightly, sun-kissed hue of her pale skin pigmentation. He loved how she always looked at her best in his eyes, whether they were sitting at home in front of a mind-numbing television broadcast about endangered animals or out here in the big, wide world where he would have to share her image with every passing pedestrian. Those eyes were like heroin to a junkie in his world, their emerald beauty drawing him closer with ever flutter of her eyelashes. It wasn’t unheard of for her to catch him staring, it was quite the normal occurrence actually and one which was happening at the minute, she blushes slightly, causing the red tint in her cheeks to become more flushed, the heat this time having nothing to do with it. On the other side of the booth, David was smiling, a genuine toothy smile that seemed almost uncharacteristic of him as he flipped through the options on the jukebox in front of him, half paying attention to his selections whilst almost never allowing his eyes to break the magnetic field of Samm’s gaze which hold him glued to the spot, grinning like a teenager who’s got his fingers wet for the first time.

David’s attire is more casual than his usual black suit with a purple tie ordeal that seems to be his standard issue appearance since joining the World Championship Federation. Instead, from the ground up he looks like he belongs in this environment, the sandals clasp around his feet, his legs are half-covered in cut-off black combat shorts whilst he wears a simple white T-Shirt with the brand markings of ‘Weekend Offender’ stitched into the right of its chest. He chews absent-mindedly on a piece of gum, this was always the case when they were out in public together. Honestly he would have preferred a cigarette but knew of Knives’ opinions on such habits, he would have one later when she was in the bathroom.

Here in the center of the Balboa Peninsula, at the tip of Newport pier, Ruby’s had long since established a steady custom. Its happy waiting staff and traditional menu was somewhat the definition of a tourist trap, it embodied American culture from the nineteen fifties and that echoed out not just from the simple décor and artificial smiles from the female waitresses but also from the food they served, the music they played and the layout of the booths. Chrome handrails were present around the service counter, red leather was the standard bearer of the seats, and the cream tables seemed to stem seamlessly from the tiled floor of the same color. A few moments pass where Samm and David fiddle with their menus, not really paying much attention having already decided what they were going to consume before they even entered the premises. A young waitress approaches their table, her face lighting up with an artificial aura of approachability and niceness. Her uniform is a low cut black dress with a white apron atop, conforming with the other young women who patrol the aisles between booths. As she reaches the table she smiles at them both in turn before speaking in a high-pitched, forced happiness, speaking in words that would inspire nostalgic thoughts in the memories of anybody who survived this forgotten era.

“What can I get for you, honies?”

David and Sammantha Sanchez share a look of muffled laughter, trying not to jest and jab at the suggestion this young girl was a throwback to an era in which her parents were probably not even born. After a few seconds it is David who replies in his best faux-fifties impression.

“Well hello there, lil’ missy. We’d like two cheeseburgers with fries on the side and two of your most swingingest frosted chocolate milky-shakes, you dig?”

Knives chortles as the waitress tires her best not to let the expression of feigned courtesy vanish from her face, kicking David under the table as she always does when he takes things too far. With her feelings hurt and the menu’s collected from the table, she walks back towards the service stand and passes on their order, her smile sapped and her pride shaken. David could only hope she had no aspirations of becoming an actress, else his playful criticism might be the final nail in the proverbial casket of her desired career.

“swingingest, chocolate milky-shakes?”

Samm repeats David’s words through pursed lips, still trying not to concede to laughing at her husband’s ridiculous idea of how people had spoken in this time period. He looks back at her and shrugs his dis-concern for the waitress, for the fifties and for anything other than receiving the food which he had ordered. A cheeseburger was a simple thing, but after weeks of foreign cuisine on the tour it was something he had been craving, needing, fantasizing about almost since they had gotten of the plane.

“I wasn’t born in the fifties either beautiful, haha.”

“No shit, that was terrible”

She laughs at her own opinion, forcing a smile out of David who again shrugs, letting his cheeks tighten into another smile. Knives places another nickel in the jukebox that donned their table, allowing the sounds of Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered by Ella Fitzgerald to slide soothingly from the tiny, somewhat tinny speakers in-between them.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=1fzZ4l2H5-w

“Simpler times”

Davids acknowledgement and appreciation of his wives’ choice in music makes her remember why she had fallen in love with this man to begin with. Behind his exterior layers David had a taste for the more obscure, the forgotten treasures of times past. The lovely tones of Ella’s voice, saturated in raw emotion bring their hands together on the cream table, fingers overlapping and interlocking. Knives gently rocks her head from side to side in time with the rhythm as her husband watches with a fixated expression on his face, imagining the words coming from her mouth and not the jukebox.

“Beautiful, beautiful music.”

“Isn’t it just?”

As the tune carries on, so do the puppy-dog eyes shared between our lovers of times past, letting the music fill the silence whilst their food is prepared. Samm’s head continues to rock gently in time with the beat, whilst David watches on, his thoughts portraying her sprawled atop a piano in a smoky jazz club. Milkshakes soon arrive, followed by their food but as they thank the waitress the scene fades in a classical kind of way, zooming in on the two through a black and white camera, before closing completely as the music continues on.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When we next find our resident couple they are on a bench at the very edge of the pier, their hands still clasped together as though releasing one another would cause them to drift apart with the world’s gravitational pull. The music still plays softly, not in the forefront of the actual scene but as a background noise to the footage itself. Soft crashing of gentle waves is heard beneath them as the tide begins to creep onto the beach below. The night sky is clear, illuminated by the orange glow of streetlights and fairground amusements from the pier itself, and the strings of Chinese lanterns which dangle delightfully overhead. David coughs, releasing Knives’ hand for what seems to be the first time in his life as he stands up and leans against the wooden railing of the pier, looking down at the water below as he pulls a packet of cigarettes and a lighter from his pocket and places one in his mouth. The look of deep concentration is now back on his face, highlighted by the flicker of flame from his lighter as he ignites his cigarette, inhales deeply and blows out a cloud of grey smoke which seems to linger longer in the glow of the moon and the lighting around them.

“It’s been almost five years for us sweetheart, did you know that?”

Taken aback by her husband’s tone, a look of worry appears on Sammantha’s face, it was very unlike him to reminisce on the past. Sure he was on point when it mattered, he remembered anniversaries and never let an encounter between them pass without reminding her how much he cared, how much she meant to him but this was different. There was a pain in his voice that she couldn’t place. Concerned she rises from the bench, her dress blowing a little in the soft breeze as she approaches her husband and places her hands around his waist from behind, cuddling in closely to him and resting her head on his shoulder as she speaks.

“Of course I know that David, it’s been the best five years of my life, how could I forget?”

Turning to her now there is a real anguish in his eyes, as though a repressed childhood memory had just swam to the very brink of his conscious thought. As he turns, he pulls her in closer, embracing her as passers by look on at what appears to be a tender moment between lovers but on closer inspection is seen to be so much more.

“I just don’t understand it sometimes, you know. It’s been five years, and you’ve stuck with me through everything. Every match in RIW and now in WCF you've had my back, even when I told you I didn’t want you to, even when I didn’t ask, you knew I needed you by my side. In and out of every dive bar and shitty motel room it took to get to this point. Through every failed fucking rehabilitation clinic, down to the bottom of every bottle. You’ve always been there. You’ve been the one constant in my life. Everything else has changed, like it’s rotted away from the inside out, but through it all we’re still here, still together, still in love.”

“Where are you going with this my lover?”

The breeze picks up a little now, causing her hair to swish around somewhat, its black strands obscuring David’s vision a little, causing him to push her back a few inches, whilst still keeping ahold of one hand. He takes the final drag of his cigarette and pings it into the ocean, watching its amber ember slowly cascade into the water below before disappearing into the dark night. He blows the smoke into the sky, carefully ensuring it doesn’t go into her face, he knew how she hated that before beginning to speak again.

“Bear with me here my dear, you know I suck at this stuff.”

“I know David, but where’s all of this coming from? I’ve never heard you speak like this in all the years we’ve been together.”

“Maybe you should have by now honey, maybe that’s not been fair of me but I want to change that tonight, I want you to see and hear how much you mean to me, to hear the words and see the love I have for you without having to read my silent glances or piece my riddled sentences together, and this is the only way I can think of to do that. Can you go into my left-hand pocket and pull-out what you find there?”

Sammantha shoots a gaze of confusion at her husband now, unsure at first if she is going to like what she finds or if this whole thing was simply away to make her grope him. After a few seconds of silently gazing into his eyes though, he gives her an encouraging nod and she obeys, her fears confirmed as she pulls out a polythene bag with several hundred green and yellow pillows; his tramadol stash.

“David, I…”

“Samm, I’ve been a prick. I’ve been so far gone in my mind trying to escape reality that I haven’t even realized that I’ve got nothing left to escape. I want you to watch this, and I want you to know that what I’m doing, isn’t just for you, not for Kayden but also for me, I want to be a part of this family, and not just in the physical space I occupy next to you in bed or the times I spend with our son. I want to be there mentally, and I haven’t been. I’ve been distant and absent for most of our relationship and that has to change.”

The weight of the world looms heavy on his shoulders as he takes the bag from her grasp, opens the zip-lock seal and turns to the ocean. David tips the bag over the barrier, causing every last little pill to float down into the ocean, every last drop, every hint of tramadol hydrocodiene he had stashed in the house, in the car and on his person at all times. They all fall down, splashing into the ocean like raindrops of cloudy thought that will surely dissolve and have an adverse effect on the aquatic life. The realization of his actions is not something he takes lightly, the crushing weight on his shoulders immediately becomes that little bit lighter and the clouds in his mind evaporate, clear skies. He had never seen clearly in seven years, his brain always having fallen victim to the fog of one narcotic or another, one pill or one drug. Her smile is radiant, she pries the bag from his fingers and releases it into the wind, causing it to float gently down to join its previous contents in the water below. She leans back into his embrace, planting a kiss on his chin, and then another on his lips as looks down at her with a weightlessness in his eyes, the aquamarine tint illuminating as he feels her lips pressed against his.

“You didn’t have to do that David, I know they help with the pain.”

“I’m not in any pain worth the pain I would be in if I lost you my love, and if I keep taking those things I’m going to lose you, I’m going to lose Kayden and eventually I’m going to lose myself in the fog. It’s not worth it anymore, not after you’ve stood by me for so long. You deserve a man who’s present not one who’s mind’s in a constant state of purgatory, and from here on out, that’s exactly what you’re going to get. I love you Sammantha, and this is the best way I could think of to show you that."

“I love you too, David but I already knew you loved me”

“Yes, but you didn’t know how much, and now you do. That wasn’t everything by the way, check my back pocket.”

Skeptical as to what she might find this time she hesitates for a few seconds again, fearing what else he could possibly need to toss into the ocean. Some syringes perhaps? Her thoughts drifted to the darkest of places before his cheeky smile brings her back to earth, peaks her curiosity and causes her to delve once more into the pockets of his shorts. This time it is not a bag, but a box, and not just any box but a ring box. She pulls it out, releasing his hands completely and holds it in front of her, too afraid to open it. Had he forgotten they were already wed?

“We’re already married you fool.”

“Just open it Samm, I know that."

Open it she does, revealing a gold banded ring set with an emerald which matches her eyes in all but beauty. He smiles at her confusion and speaks in a soft tone.

“It’s an eternity ring my love, it’s an apology ring and it’s a promise ring. It’s my way to say I’m sorry for everything that’s happened, it’s my way of saying it won’t happen again and it’s also my way of telling you that even if we were doomed to repeat the same past, the dark times we’ve overcame, and all the rest of the shit we’ve endured. I’d do it with nobody but you until the end of time itself.”

She smiles at him now, placing the band over her finger so that it now rests above their engagement and wedding rings. He pulls her in closer and kisses her tenderly, taking the ring box from her hand and tossing it over the pier to join the rest of the unwanted items. They spend a few moments more simply gazing at one another, lost in the magnificence of each other as well as the beauty of the world from this angle. It was the perfect end to a perfect night and as they begin to walk back across the pier in a comfortable silence it is only at a merry-go-round which they stop.

Metal horses on poles circle around a spinning platform as fairground music plays to their motion. As they pause they share a childish glance at one another before Sammantha sticks her tongue out a little at David who smiles back with a knowing tell in his eyes. The scene fades to black as David pulls her closer, whispering a few choice words of both symbolism and actuality as they join the line to partake in this ride, Ella FitzGerald’s voice fades with the camera this time as the scene is drained back into black and white and before finally disappearing completely.

“Shall we go round again my dear?”