Five Things I Hate About You

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Ben M
Posts: 1125
Joined: Sun Feb 26, 2012 2:12 pm
Location: UK

Five Things I Hate About You

Post by Ben M »

OOC: Will, it's always a pleasure. Good luck bro! Hope you all enjoy reading.

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Monday, March 22, 2021: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

Backstage at the Bell MTS Place, Chris Jericho was making his way back to the locker room. A few moments earlier, he had issued an open challenge for Wrestlemania, which had been answered by long-time rival AJ Styles. With just six days to go until Wrestlemania 20, Chris Jericho – the man who had main evented Wrestlemania 19, and won the World Title – finally had a match. As Jericho approached his locker room, he saw a familiar face, albeit one he had not seen in quite some time.

Chris Jericho: Don? What are you doing here?

Standing outside Jericho's locker room was Don Callis, co-executive vice president of Impact Wrestling. Callis had previously worked for EBWF between September 2017 and March 2018, during which time he had been Nikki Cross' manager. Callis was a fellow Winnipeg native, and had known Chris Jericho for a long time. Upon seeing Jericho, Callis smiled.

Don Callis: It's good to see you, Chris. How are you doing?

Chris Jericho: I'm great. Come in.

Jericho entered his locker room and invited Callis inside. After Callis had entered the room, Jericho closed the door and the two men took a seat.

Chris Jericho: I must admit, I'm surprised to see you here... I know you still live in Winnipeg, but I figured you'd be busy in Nashville.

Don Callis: I'm actually flying back to Nashville tomorrow for Impact. But I was home this weekend and since I saw EBWF were doing a show here in Winnipeg, I didn't want to miss it. It's the first time you've been back here for a while, isn't it?

Jericho nodded.

Chris Jericho: I think the last time we did a show here was September 2019? So yeah, it's been a while. Always good to be back though.

Don Callis: And I see you've got your match for Mania set too. Jericho versus Styles... it's a big one! Just a shame it's not the main event.

Jericho shrugged.

Chris Jericho: I got the main event spot last year, it's time to give someone else a chance. Honestly I'm just happy to be involved... I can't believe it's been twenty years.

Don Callis: I know. Who would have thought that little challenger promotion from St. Louis could come out on top against Vince McMahon? It's impressive, and you've been a key part of that journey Chris. But I've got to ask... don't you wonder if it's time for a change?

Jericho looked confused.

Chris Jericho: Look Don, we're friends but let me be straight with you... I've got no interest in working for Impact Wrestling. Besides, even if I was interested, I don't think you could afford me!

Jericho began to laugh, but Don Callis' expression remained serious.

Don Callis: I wasn't talking about Impact, Chris. I've been talking to Tony Khan, and he's a big fan of yours. Kenny, the Bucks and Cody have all been saying how much they'd love to have you in Jacksonville. And working for AEW would give you the chance to return to Japan... isn't that something you've always wanted to do?

Jericho was no longer laughing. He looked annoyed.

Chris Jericho: Is that why you're here, Don? To act as a talent broker for AEW? Do you really think I'd stab Wes in the back like that?

Don Callis: No, of course not! I'm here because I wanted to see some great wrestling, and catch up with an old friend. Hell, if Tony Khan knew I was trying to recruit you, he'd be furious. That's not the way he does business, he hates middle men. But I listened to what you said out there Chris, and I know you well enough to know that there was some truth in your words. You might not want to admit it to me, but we both know that you're a last-minute addition to the Wrestlemania card. They should have been building towards your match for weeks, not pairing you with AJ Styles almost as an afterthought. Can you honestly tell me that you're happy to take a back seat to Edge and Randy Orton's half-assed build up to a World Title match? Come on.

Chris Jericho: Don, you're my friend and I respect you... but you're out of line here. You're lucky they even let you in the building. I don't have to tell you anything, but in answer to your question yes, I'm happy to "take a back seat" to Edge and Randy as you put it. You have no idea what they have planned for Wrestlemania... the truth is, I don't either. But I know it's going to be great. And so is my match against AJ Styles. I wasn't lying when I talked about stealing the show, that's exactly what I intend to do. A match like Chris Jericho versus AJ Styles is a main event match, regardless of where it is on the card. Besides, I'm 50 years old and I've been wrestling for over 30 years. I would rather be helping new superstars build their careers than trying to take the spotlight all for myself.

Don Callis: Haven’t you seen what they're doing in AEW, Chris? If you want to work with up and coming stars, there's a ton of them in Jacksonville. When I look at EBWF, I see the same faces that have been here for a long time... Edge, Orton, Miz. You brought back Raven, and signed Jeff Jarrett to a contract! Even Impact won't touch Jeff Jarrett these days.

Chris Jericho: Yeah, I've seen a lot of up and coming stars in AEW... mostly when I'm browsing through YouTube and see Dark matches in my suggested videos. They don't seem to get on TV much, because Kenny, Cody, Matt and Nick are too busy fantasy booking themselves. Honestly Don, I think it's great that Impact, AEW and New Japan have been able to get a working agreement in place. It's increase competition for us and WWE, and the wrestling business can only benefit from it. But if you think you can boost your profile with Tony Khan by offering to bring me in, then I'm afraid you've overplayed your hand.

Jericho had had enough. He got to his feet, walked to the door of his locker room and opened it, making it clear that it was time for Don Callis to leave. Callis sighed, and reluctantly stood up.

Don Callis: This has all been one big misunderstanding, Chris. I promise you, I didn't come here with any agenda. I saw my friend standing in the ring, cutting one hell of a promo like you always do, but I listened to what you had to say and I don't think you're happy here. So I just wanted to remind you that there are other options. Like I said before, Tony doesn't want or need me to take care of business for him. But I can guarantee that if you gave him a call, he'd want to speak to you. The only reason he hasn't called you himself is because he thinks you're too loyal to Wes to even pick up the phone. I see now that he was right to think that. I just hope Wes values that loyalty.

Just as Callis was about to leave, he stopped and handed Jericho a business card.

Don Callis: Here's Tony's number. Just think about it, please?

Jericho didn't say anything, but he took the card. Callis smiled, then exited the locker room. Jericho looked at the card, shook his head, then threw the card in the trash.

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Saturday, March 27, 2021: Tampa, Florida

It was the day before Wrestlemania, and Chris Jericho was standing inside the ring at the Raymond James Stadium. The set was almost finished, and it looked amazing. One of the set designers, Jay Robinson, was standing at ringside, and Jericho looked down at him and smiled.

Chris Jericho: You guys always blow me away... great work, Jay.

Robinson smiled, thanked Jericho then continued to help the production crew get everything set up. As Jericho looked around the stadium, taking everything in, one of the cameramen entered the ring.

Cameraman: Are you ready, Mr Jericho?

Jericho nodded.

Chris Jericho: Absolutely. Let's do this.

The cameraman gave him a thumbs up, then started filming.

Chris Jericho: We are just over 24 hours away from Wrestlemania 20, and I am here in Tampa ready for action. I can honestly say there is nowhere else in the world that I would rather be right now... tomorrow night, I take on AJ Styles in this very ring and I am excited as hell. A lot of people have been talking about what I said on Warfare, and there seems to be some rumours circulating that I am unhappy with my position in EBWF. So before I talk about my opponent, I'd like to clarify a few things. I wanted to make sure I remembered everything, so I've made a list!

Grinning, Jericho walked to the edge of the ring and asked one of the production crew to hand him his "list". Jericho's list was on a silver clipboard, with "The List of Jericho" written on the back. Jericho held up the clipboard and chuckled to himself.

Chris Jericho: I know, what a throwback right? Anyway, let me make my way through the list, and then I can move onto AJ Styles. Number one – am I unhappy that I'm not in the main event of Wrestlemania? You're damn right I am. Every superstar in that locker room should be unhappy they're not in the main event, except for Edge and Randy Orton who are of course in the main event. As a professional wrestler, you should always want to be in the main event. That's what you're working towards, isn't it? Being the top guy, being the World Champion. I love being a professional wrestler, but I love it so much more when I have that big gold championship around my waist. When I beat Aiden English at Wrestlemania 19 to become an 11-time World Champion, it was one of the highlights of my career. Did I want to be challenging Randy Orton for the World Title this year? Absolutely. But I was more unhappy about not having a match at Wrestlemania period, which is item number two that I want to address. A lot of people have been asking me if I meant what I said about not getting the respect I deserve. Absolutely I did. I am EBWF's longest serving superstar, I have been here through the good, the bad and the ugly, so I know what a momentous achievement it is for EBWF to make it to Wrestlemania 20. There was no way I was going to let that milestone pass without me being involved, so after not winning the Royal Rumble, I waited to see what Wes Ikeda had planned for me. Surely he had something special lined up for his best friend, the most successful superstar in EBWF history? And yet, his focus seemed to be elsewhere. Fast forward to Warfare last week, I still didn't have a match, so I confronted Wes Ikeda and asked him "where’s my match, man?" He said to me "Chris, it's Wrestlemania 20... we wouldn't be here without you, so you can have whatever match you want except a World Title match". I thought about it, and the truth was that I realised it didn't matter who my opponent was, just that I was on the card. I can have a great match with anyone, and I can beat anyone, so I decided to give the entire locker room a chance to step into the ring with Le Champion. I issued an open challenge, and of course the first man to answer the call was AJ Styles. I'm surprised he managed to make it to the ring without stopping to get high first, but I'm glad he did, because I'm looking forward to stepping into the ring with him again. So when I say I'm excited, when I say there is nowhere else I would rather be, I mean it. I was unhappy about not being in the main event, I was unhappy about not having a match for Wrestlemania, and I did feel I wasn't getting the respect I deserve. Those three things are all true. But that does not mean I want to leave EBWF... I'm not going anywhere. This is my home.

Jericho ripped the first page off his clipboard and threw it away.

Chris Jericho: I guess I didn't really need a list, did I? The truth is, after writing down those few points, I started making a list of all the things I hate about AJ Styles. I ran out of paper, and my hand got so cramped up I wasn't sure it would heal in time for Wrestlemania.

Jericho smirked, flicked through the rest of the pages on his clipboard, then handed it back to a member of the production crew. Jericho then looked towards the camera, as if to address AJ Styles directly.

Chris Jericho: AJ, I really don't have the time of the energy to list everything that I hate about you, so here are the top five in no particular order. Number one, I hate how arrogant you are. You seem to think you're one of the greatest superstars the EBWF has ever had, and you make out that whenever you're jobbing it's because you're not really trying and you don't really don't care. What you don't seem to understand is that because you don't try and you don't care, you're nowhere near as great as you claim to be. If Babe Ruth had sucked for several years, then told everyone that he was just happy to take the money and didn't care that he sucked, people would have stopped caring about him. If you were even half as good as you think you are, you'd be up there challenging for the World Title still, not losing to the likes of Raven. Number two, I hate your "don't give a shit" attitude. You seem to think it makes you cool, like you're some kind of antihero or something. But all it makes you is an asshole. Number three, I hate the way you treat women. You're a total creep, and every woman in EBWF knows it. Number four – this is the big one – I hate the fact that you've got this unhealthy obsession with Wes Ikeda. You seem to think there is this deep, personal hatred that you and Wes Ikeda have for one another. Well I hate to break it to you, junior, but that hatred is pretty one sided. Oh I don't doubt that you despise Wes Ikeda, that's obvious every time you open your mouth. I can't remember the last time you said anything without taking a shot at Wes Ikeda... you've probably got a burn book at home where you write down all your favourite insults so you can remember them. But I know Wes pretty well, and I know for a fact he doesn't hate you. He doesn't care enough about you to hate you. That's why no matter how hard you try to get under his skin, you'll never get that match against him that you crave. Fighting me is the closest you will ever get to fighting Wes Ikeda. And number five... this is probably what I hate most of all AJ... I hate seeing what you've become compared to what you used to be. You've been a part of EBWF for ten years, on and off. Before that, you were one of the hottest prospects in pro wrestling. You had a memorable few years with Ring of Honor, then you went to TNA, where you are probably still the most successful superstar in that company's history. You were a multiple time World Champion, their first Triple Crown and Grand Slam Champion. I don't think it's an exaggeration to say that TNA – or Impact Wrestling as it's known now – would not have made it without you carrying them for so many years. I was one of the guys who pushed for EBWF to sign you, because I wanted to work with "The Phenomenal One". When you first signed for EBWF, there was a question mark over your head – people were wondering if you had what it takes to be a top guy in a major promotion. You proved those doubters wrong by winning the 2012 Royal Rumble and going on to win the World Title at Wrestlemania 11. You're now a six-time EBWF World Champion, but somewhere along the way you became bitter, and your biggest battles were taking place backstage rather than in the ring. I think it all started at Wrestlemania 14, when Brock Lesnar versus John Cena was the "main event" rather than your World Title match with Dolph Ziggler. You really took that one to heart, didn't you AJ? That was when you started talking about being "disrespected", and you haven’t stopped since. But you never seemed to realise that the reason people don't respect you is because you don’t show respect to anyone else. Hell, you probably don't even respect yourself. Knowing the bitter, twisted individual you've become, I expect our match tomorrow night to be more of a fight than a wrestling match. You're probably going to try and hurt me, to try and use me to "get to Wes". And if you want a fight, I'll give you a fight. I'm not afraid to stoop to your level and fight dirty. But what I'm really hoping, AJ, is that you will remind everyone why they called you "Phenomenal". I said I wanted to steal the show at Wrestlemania, and I meant it. Together you and I, we can do that. Bring your A-game, kid, and let's prove once and for all that you don't need to go on last to have the match of the night.

Jericho nodded to the cameraman, making it clear he was done. The cameraman stopped filming, and Jericho exited the ring. As he walked up the ramp, he thought about how much had changed in the past year. One thing that hadn't changed, though, was his love for EBWF. Jericho truly was excited to be a part of Wrestlemania 20... and he was determined to steal the show.
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