The scene opens slowly into a vacant room. The walls are falling apart. The drywall is broken in several places around this room and the ceiling is falling apart. The floor is made of broken cement. There is a single light hanging down from the ceiling, but the bulb inside is busted out and there are glass shards right below the light. Leaning against the wall in the back corner of the room is a very rugged looking Ronnie McNeil, wearing black jeans that are fading; black Adidas, and a white Crimson Tide shirt that is torn at the sleeves. His hair is getting thicker and he now has a beard growing on his face. Ronnie steps away from the wall, and spits on the ground, staring out into the camera with a fake smile, before breaking the uneasy silence.


If I could give you a visual image of how I leave my opponents in the ring after I beat them, this would be the best I could give you. A room that once could have been the master bed room to a loving couple, or a teenager that is growing up while hiding pot and porn magazines under his bed to keep it out of sight from his parents that he thinks don’t understand him. Or maybe even a child’s room. The innocence that once lived in this room that had toys, books, markers, crayons, posters of the power rangers, and anything else a small child might love and enjoy. Then again maybe this room was just a guest room for dear friends that some people always want in their lives. Then again this could just be a place of quiet time. A place where someone can go to get away from the world outside and just lay down and close their eyes and escape the harsh realities. At one point in time this room was kept up. This room kept the heart beat that its owners had. This room was, for lack of a better term, in its prime. Tip top shape…not a scratch on it.


Now look at it. Take a good hard look. The light is busted, the walls are collapsing, the ceiling is caving in, and the floor is about to give way. Do you see it? Do you see how broken and forgotten this room has become? Do you see the lack of care? The neglect of what could be years? Do you understand the point I’m trying to get across, or is this too deep? It shouldn’t be. It’s very simple to understand. A core has been hollowed out. A young healthy room is now but a mere skeleton of what it once was. This is what I do night in and night out. This is how I pay the bills and put food on the table. This is how I get the job done in the ring. I take the hopes, dreams, and energy from a talented wrestler and I make it crumble. I do what I have to do in order to become the best, and from the way I look at it, I am the very best at what I do.


Ronnie pauses a moment. He looks around again. He steps on the glass pieces and listens to the crunching sounds.


Hans, I really don’t care if you have respect for me. I really don’t care if you think I am going to give you a big test. Hans...to be honest, I really just don’t care for you at all. Your words are very meaningless and hollow to me. I hear your lips moving but what comes out of your mouth is nothing more than filling in time. Hans, what you and everyone else fails to realize is that I AM the golden ticket for you. You may have the title, but I, even after spending the last few months stinking up the joint and not giving a damn, am the straw that stirs this match, and it's incumbent upon you to take it from me. So yes, while I am going to rob you and while I am going to cheat you out of my absolute best because Hans, I don't need my A+ game to beat you...don’t feel bad. Just understand that I have more important things to attend to. Hans, this should feel like a total slap in your face and I am going for just that because let’s be very clear. I didn’t come back for the fans, or for anybody else but myself. I came back for this......


Ronnie picks up a picture of him holding the All-Star title from the chair it was sitting on, just out of camera view.


I have endured so much to get back to this point. I've faced more hardship than you've seen life on this earth. Hans, you aren't good enough to keep me away from this again. I am hall of fame material. I’ve shown this time and time again.


So Hans, do me a favor and bring your best. Do what you have to do. Wrestle your heart out. When you still come up short, realize that I didn’t even put forth my best efforts and I showed you just how inferior you really are to me. You'll be just another victim of my championship Addiction. Nothing more, nothing less.


Ronnie smiles, and with a wink, the scene fades out.


-end feed-