In his kitchen Jeremy is preparing dinner. He was in the mood for pasta and had started working on a vegetable-beef bolognas. A bottle of red wine was being sipped from a glass and in typical Jeremy fashion he was watching old wrestling replays on the HWA Network from Road to Ruin 2006, Callisto was taking on Raven in a Ladder Match for the Spotlight Championship. A familiar ping was heard followed by a pop-up on screen and he saw that a new topic had been added. He switched over and saw Lunatik’s name on the screen and rolled his eyes. He paused his chopping for a moment to watch as his upcoming opponent addressed him.

“…I'm going to inflict pain on you. I'm going to make you feel physical and emotional pain. I'm going to destroy you…”

He continues watching as Lunatik assaults some dude with barbwire, and then some unexpected words come.

“…I challenged you to a exploding barbed wired death match…”

He sits up straight, eyebrows rising and eyes narrowing with keener concentration, a stunned look on his face. He grabs the remote and turns the volume up a little more as he rewinds those last words and listens. Lunatik’s promo ends and there’s silence after. Jeremy is frozen in thought and takes him a moment to come out of it.

Suddenly a fit of rage hits him, his hand swipes across the counter knocking bottles, vegetables and dishes to the floor in thuds, splats, and clatters. His nostrils flare as he puts his hands on his hips trying desperately too cool down.

(Jeremy): Touché Lunatik…Touché!

Jeremy paces the kitchen floor, tears welling in his eyes that he fights to keep held back.

(Jeremy): I see what you did there Looney. Helloween Harvest, one year ago...Matt got in the ring with Maniac in that Japanese Exploding Barbwire Deathmatch. The match that ultimately put him out of the ring for good, and nearly a year to the date here you are with essentially the same challenge to me.

Jeremy rubs the hairs on his light beard thoughtfully, then wags his finger at the camera.

(Jeremy): You want to hurt me, fine…I admit it…you hit me in a really sore spot there. Matt…

Jeremy pauses, feeling as if he’s about to explode if fury, then takes a breath.

(Jeremy): You and Maniac are so much alike, playing your fuking mind games. For a moment I thought this would be an old-fashioned grudge match. Two guys with a beef settling things with fists and feet, best man….“Me”…wins, bragging rights and all that but……curveball.

He looks at his bare arms held out before him, his legs in his jogging shorts, his flawless skin. He talks out loud almost to no one, just his own thoughts coming out of his head.

(Jeremy): We all get hit with chairs, the usual crap around the ring…hell Bryan Deas sneak attacked me with a baseball bat once and I got stitches but…I confess…I’ve never felt that pain, not the pain you describe. Not like Matt, not like Maniac, not like you Lunatik.

I’ve never looked at my own skin counted cuts. Stuck my finger in a hole to see how deep a wound was. I’ve never felt or smelled my own flesh burning. Never lost so much blood I became weak to the point only instinct carried me through. Never felt barbwire grate me like cheese. No, I’ve never felt that pain. But if that’s what you want, if that’s what Maniac’s little guard dog demands before I kick in his master’s door and get to then I accept.

Jeremy raises his eyes back to the camera, a fierce and fiery glare in them.

(Jeremy): It doesn’t make a difference to me Lunatik. This just really just makes it better because I get to beat you at your own game. We’ll hurt each other in this match, but you won’t destroy me. You see, you’ve got that wrong Looney. I was content wiping the mat with you skill vs skill, but now… now it’s me who is going to destroy you.

Just like the stars in the sky whose light reaches us long after they’ve died. You’ll get backstage, get to the hospital, then get back home and not even realize your career is over until you get up in pain for your morning piss and look in the mirror. There won’t be ring lights, no crowd cheering your name, no ring gear, no face paint, just an old broken man staring into his own soul trying to lie to himself that he’s got some fuel left in his tank, but trust me Lunatik you won’t. At Road to Ruin I’m going to ignite your ass and there won’t be anything left in you but the regret you ever decided to come back.

Jeremy reaches for his phone on the counter and ends the stream which goes to black.