New Faces (for acuya)

“Not a word. Promise.” Julia replied with a wink as Kozue returned the hug. And after they separated and got settled back into their seats, the blonde listened as the conversation shifted back to what she’d done following Domino’s match.

“Sooorta~” she said, a faint pinkish tint forming on her cheeks. “He’s my boyfriend. We’ve been dating since...well, about a week after I made my debut here.” Thinking about him suddenly made her feel like a giddy schoolgirl with a crush, though Julia didn’t seem to mind.

“But yeah, there wasn’t any chance in hell I was just gonna sit there and watch her smash that chair over him. Especially after she cheated him outta that match.” The blonde’s cheerful smile began to subside the more she thought about what had happened in the ring that night. “He worked so hard for that moment too...” Julia knew perfectly well how sneaky people like Reira could be. She’d dealt with the type on more than one occasion before coming to Japan. But that certainly didn’t make what happened to Drake seem any more fair.

Something about Julia blushing made Kozue want to blush, too. Two years ago, this would've been the exact sort of girl that she would vehemently make fun of, and now they were sitting down, having a few friendly drinks. Funny how life worked out sometimes.

"Only a week, huh?" She started up a little giggle, but quickly drowned it with whisky. "That was fast. But I don't blame you - Domino's a great catch. Caught some of his matches when I first got here, guy's amazing in the ring. No damn clue why he wasn't in the battle royale."

She paused and tapped her chin. "Actually, scratch that. I do know why he wasn't in the royale - probably would've won."

“Yeah, he is.” Julia replied in agreement. It wasn’t that she was trying to brag, or anything. But the fact that he was so amazing in seemingly every way was the reason she’d been so drawn to him so quickly.

Kozue’s last comment sent a mixture of emotions through the blonde. She chuckled in amusement, yet at the same time hated the thought that he might be kept out of high-stake matches just because he was good enough to be the favorite in them.

“Geez, sounds like Tension’s under some kinda evil communist regime or somethin’.” she said, before taking another sip from her drink.

Kozue snort at that last one, barely managing to hold in her latest gulp. Almost did a spit-take.

"'Evil communist regime'." She chuckled, as she wiped her mouth clean. "Yeah, that's not too far off. Only it's wrestling., and instead of the whole revolution thing, it's a company with men and women fighting that's run by a woman who really, seriously, unquestionably hates men."

Kozue couldn't remember enough of history to comment more than that. Shame, really.

She shook her head. "It's just a lot of bullshit." She swung over in the chair. "You know, they actually offered me a title shot? I'd barely been here a year, my record's shit compared to Drake, and they were gonna put me in the main event. I turned it down, but it just shows you how Melissa thinks. That woman hates dicks."

Julia couldn’t help but chuckle along with Kozue, glad she had at least managed to lighten up the conversation a bit. Not that the situation being discussed was anything funny, but it was good to have a moment of laughter to keep their spirits up.

Her eyes then widened a bit when Kozue mentioned turning down a title match. “Ya turned down a chance to challenge for the world title? Why?” she asked. Julia had a feeling Kozue must’ve had a good reason. But then again, it’s hard to find something a chance like that wouldn’t be worth.

Kozue was more than willing to explain the situation to Julia, but for that she would needed to be just a little more intoxicated. She took a few large gulps out of the mug, finished it off, then motioned for the bartender to set them up with another bottle.

"That's kind of a weird thing to ask. You just don't realize why, is all." Kozue shifted about in the seat until she faced Julia straight up, looking right at her. "Okay, quick question - what do you know about King? Not just from Showdown, but the rep that he's built in Tension."

“Hmm...” Julia tapped her chin and looked up for a moment, trying to search her memory for anything she might’ve seen or heard about King aside from what little she’d seen at Showdown.

“Not much, really. Just that he’s a big dude with a cheetah mask, and that he’s apparently got a little group goin’. Why?” She had a feeling King must’ve somehow tied into why Kozue had turned down that title shot, though it still wasn’t clear what the connection was.

Kozue took a big gulp and shook her head. "Leopard. Cheetahs have the solid black spots, leopards have it black on the outside, orange on the inside. I'm being a smartass, sorry. Anyway."

She took a slight paused and rubbed her chin, thinking of the most tactful way to explain King. He wasn't a subject that you could touch on lightly. "Okay,  you know how, in  Friction, there are some girls who get really, really touchy in matches, and they get all freaky with their opponents, and sometimes they don't take no for an answer? King is the male version of that. The guy goes around, doing whatever he wants to whoever he wants, and for the longest time people just turned a blind eye to how much of an utter piece of shit he was. So, me and some friends - well, one friend and a guy I kind of knew - we got together and we called King out, challenged him at Showdown."

She slid the glass back and forth between her hands on the table, looking down at it while it passed like a pendulum. "So, we were all set up to take on his goon squad, shut them down so we could face the big man himself. But then Melissa Sellers gives me a call and brings me in, and she's all about giving me a title shot all of the sudden. Only thing is, she wants it to happen at Showdown. I'm already booked at Showdown to help my friends. So. Decision time - leave your friends to take on the rapist's best friends by themselves and get my title shot or help my friends out and kiss the title goodbye. I decided I didn't want to be a complete, selfish bitch, so..."

Julia couldn’t help but give a little chuckle when Kozue corrected her about the cheetah-- er, leopard mask. She wasn’t really sure why, but something about it was just funny. “No no, it’s fine.” she said.

The blonde then listened as Kozue started to explain. She hadn’t been in the ring with any of those “really, really touchy” types here yet, but she certainly knew what Kozue meant. She nodded, and things started making sense to her once she talked about the kind of person King was, and the fact that she and her friends wanted to put a stop to it. And on the same day her title match would’ve been, naturally.

“Ooohh, I get it now. I’m not sure there’s a ton of good reasons a person could have for turnin’ down a world title shot, but that’s definitely one of ‘em. I think ya definitely made the right choice.”

Kozue couldn't help but chuckle along with Julia. The girl had a pleasant voice. Nice, soft, lilting, welcoming. It was almost like she sung as she spoke. Weird. But comforting. "Shit, I'm trying to be depressed here. You're ruining it." She gave her a quick, playful elbow, then shifted back in her seat.

"Yeah, that's what I thought, too." Kozue sighed and leaning forward, putting her elbows on the table. "I felt like I was doing the right thing for once in my life, you know?I mean, I've done some good things, here and there. But it just felt so...right. I even managed to show one of King's lackeys how much of an asshole he was, and he walked out on the bastard. I felt like I accomplished something. Like I made a difference."

She grabbed the glass and took a quick gulp, then stared into it. "But no. He just found some other girl to work for him, and she screwed up the match and we lost. Such bullshit..."