Psyche and Bryan stand together in a secluded room in a gym. Both are dressed in their workout attire, ready to get started. Psyche throws her hair up into a ponytail, pulling it tight afterwards. They had clearly just began their session as neither looked tired in any way. They square off, Psyche loosely in her ready stance. She doesn’t seem to be 100% into this whole thing. She suddenly stands up straight, looking at her lover across from her.

Psyche: “I don’t know that I’m really up for this right now, love…”

Bryan: “I’ll be honest, I’m not feeling all that great either right now. But this match is important for you, got to get back in there and show to Julliet that you won’t be pushed around.”

Psyche raises her arm, motioning towards him with her palm up.

Psyche: “You can’t even use your bloody arm properly.”

She sighs, putting her hands on her hips. She looks down to the ground.

Psyche: “I just… I’m nervous, Bryan. I’m…”

Her words trailed off. She couldn’t say what she really felt out loud to him.

Bryan: “What do you have to be nervous about? You’ve been doing fine here, Zarek Lyle is gonna be a pushover for you. Trust me.”

She raises her eyes to him, sadness covering her face.

Psyche: “I’m not talking about him, Bryan.”

Her words were almost a whisper. Her mind was filled with thoughts of her father.

Bryan: “Oh, right. Fuck, look...You’ve got to do this. I know you have a lot going on in your mind right now. But you can use this, you can use all of it to your advantage. Trust me, I definitely know that. They’re gonna regret getting into the ring with you, as you are right now. You’re going to tear them apart, and it’s really going to help you feel better.”

She bit her lip, shaking her head. She wasn’t sure about this. She got into her stance again anyways. The two locked up, Bryan only able to do so much. Even still, he quickly took the upper hand and got her down on the ground with an arm drag takedown. He stood up, looking down at her. She just lay there, staring at the ceiling.

Psyche: “I just… want to lay down all day.”

Bryan: “Come on now, you’re not even trying!”

Psyche: “You’re right… I’m not.”

Bryan’s arm came out in front of him. She looked at his hand, not making any movements.

Bryan: “Just try… for me?”

Psyche sighed again, reaching her hand up to take his. He brought her up onto her feet. They got into their stances again, Bryan being the first to move. Psyche tried to overpower him, but once again, he got her down on her back. She shook her head, frustrated that she had to do this at all. She sat up for a moment.

Psyche: “This is hopeless. I really don’t know if I can get my head into this match.”

She frowned, staring ahead.

Psyche: “I’m fucking scared!”

She blurted it out randomly.

Bryan: “About what?”

He paused, realizing what she said.

Bryan: “Oh…”

She stayed in the same position as she was.

Psyche: “I admit that. I’m scared, Bryan.”

She turned her head up to him, the sadness in her eyes again. He nodded at her. He didn’t know what else to say to her. He reached his hand out, picking her up. He pulled her into a hug, stroking her hair. She kept herself composed. She had done enough crying over the past few days.

Bryan: “Well, what do you want to do? Do you want to give up? We can try again later.”

Psyche: “No, no. This would be a waste of our time if I just bloody quit now. I could have just stayed in bed, then."

She pulled away from the hug, closing her eyes for a moment. She calmed herself, nodding slightly. A bit of motivation starting to come back.

Psyche: “Fine. We’ll try it again, yeah?”

Once again, the two got into their stance. They locked up again, Psyche taking control this time around. She almost kept control, but Bryan took over last second with another arm drag. She hit that mat harder this time. She let out a frustrated groan and slammed her fist against the mat.

Bryan: “You need to focus.”

Psyche: “I know! Fuck.”

She pushed herself up once again, this time a lot faster. Now she was getting into this. She was getting back on track. They locked up once again, Psyche now overpowering Bryan. She brought him into a headlock, tightening her arm around his neck. After a moment, she adjusted her position and managed to slam him onto the mat. She let out a bit of a happier sigh.

Psyche: “How was that?”

Bryan: “That was better, still seem to be holding back a little bit. Don’t need to hold back, give me another one.”

She nodded, agreeing with him. They go at it again. Bryan stands there steadfast, watching as Psyche grabs his collar. She pulls him towards her, using her hip to leverage him over and sweep him in one fluid motion. The Harai Goshi seems to surprise Bryan, as he lay there on the mat. She smiles, seeing the look of surprise on his face. She continues to hold his hand for a second, leaning down to kiss his knuckles.

Psyche: “I think I’ve got it back. This feels right. I need to do what I’m meant to. I need to do this for my dad.”

She nodded at nothing in particular and helped him up. The two continued their workout, getting Psyche back into the proper mindset to fight. She was going to do her best. She was going to prove herself to be as good as she can be again.

Psyche stands in the same room as she had previously been in with Bryan. He was nowhere in sight, but his bag was still pushed into a corner. Her hair was wet with sweat from after their workout. She wiped the back of her hand along her forehead, looking at the camera.

“Once again… I have to bring up this point about you relying on another person to win. You try and use a win against Taryn as a way to prove that you are a rising star and on your way to being a main eventer. Sorry, love… but that’s not anything to brag about. You beat ONE woman while working with someone else. Gods! You have me shaking in my bloody high heels! You can’t claim to be a star when you’re in a tag team. Until you actually prove your worth in a one on one match, you can’t really say much. This would have been your chance to do so… but unfortunately I’m here to steal that chance away from you. As I said before, you have to get through me to prove yourself. And I’m not going to make this easy.”

She shook her head, making a face as if she thought her opponent was delusional.

“You know… I really didn’t know who you were. I’ve had enough things on my mind to keep me from paying attention to the new people popping into this place. Had you actually been more impressive, maybe I would have payed more attention. But that’s where your complete narcissism towards yourself comes into play. You THINK you’re more important than you really are. When you are not even noticed by a person who isn’t even necessarily top talent, it must really grate your nerves. I didn’t even know you had Twitter, where I guess you get the most attention. Everyone talks shit on there. Do you really think she picked you out of the hundreds of people she follows and decided one day to go after your little tag team? “Hmm… I think I’ll talk about Zarek Lyle and his tag partner today!””

She changes her voice to sound a bit more like Amber.

“Get over yourself, sweetheart! You’re really not that important! You’re only number one contenders right now because there isn’t anyone else around! Not to mention that the ones who have tried continue to fail. You simply got lucky and came before the newer ones showed up. Now you have your chance… and just like in our match, you’re going to choke.”

She wrapped her hands around her own neck, feigning choking herself. She laughs playfully as she drops her hands.

“Yes, our match was scheduled to be a tag team match in the beginning. Things change. I don’t care what it was supposed to be. What I care about is what it is now. And now is when I get to bring your God complex back down to earth. And crush it under my boot.”

She smirks, pushing her foot against the mat and twisting it.

“I never talked about the talent of other tag team wrestlers here for a reason, Zarek… Why? Because they have already proven themselves as singles competitors. What you have done in the past is of no importance in this match. For all I know, your previous opponents in single competition could have been jobbers. I don’t know how good they were. All I can go by is your word. And that really doesn’t mean much. I earned the wins I have had here. I earned my title shot. Did you really earn your number one contender spot, or did you just jump in here at the right time? I’m honestly not really sure. Amber could have even mistaken you two for another one of the new teams here now. Who knows?”

She shrugs her shoulders.

“Now… for Julliet Brooks. Here’s the funny thing about my win at Life’s a Gamble… I earned that shot by getting Julliet Brooks out of my way. Tell me again how I’m not good enough to beat her. In fact… I got the first case of the night. Interesting, right? It’s as if I’m actually good enough to wrestle against some of the best here.”

She places her finger against her chin, thinking.

“I’m not going to stand here and claim to be better than everyone on the roster. I’m not. I’ll admit that. But what I am is a damn good competitor. And because of my losses during my time in Boardwalk, a lot of people have counted me out of matches. I’m instantly looked at as if I’m not worthy. When you say something like that, my drive usually tends to grow. I try harder just to prove that I AM better than what you think. My career isn’t based simply off of being Bryan Williams’ girlfriend. If that were the case, I’d probably be his valet instead of wrestling on my own. And I’d lose every week. But that’s not what happens, is it. I do win matches. I can wrestle on my own. I don’t need his help. That’s what people don’t understand. I didn’t start wrestling because of Bryan. I had been wrestling for years before coming to America. But what we did in England where I fought wasn’t at all like this. The problem with the change into this type of wrestling is that I had to change my style. Which is why I am learning new things every day. That’s why I’m training and working to better myself. I had to rework my entire wrestling style to actually fit in here. But like your words about your previous matches over the years, I’m speaking from my own experiences. I have no proof of this. But I do have proof that I’m learning how to adapt to this place. I’m bettering myself. And nobody will stop me from doing that. Not you either, that’s for sure. Gods are really only men in the end.”

She tilts her head to the camera, keeping her eyes on it. The door finally opens to the secluded room. Bryan walks in with a new shirt on. He slicks his hair back with his fingers and picks up his bag. Psyche turns her head, smiling at him. He raises his hand to motion for her to come with him. Without another word, she heads over to him, picking up her bag. They leave the room together, the camera fading to black.