Break on Through

Gabbie nodded back. She understood. She was a professional when it came to boxing and kickboxing, but a novice at wrestling. Checking her ego was going to be difficult, but she knew she had to do it for the sake of everything else.

"I got it." She said simply, but tilted her head when she was pulled close, raising an eyebrow. "What's that?" She asked, hoping it wasn't something weird.

"Say what you want about whoever you want, me included, but do not talk shit about Cassie."

Taylor kept her grip on Gabbie's hand, and her maintained her unflinchingly fierce gaze. Whatever else was true about Gabbie's feelings toward Cassie, she had to know that Taylor wasn't fucking around.

Gabbie heard the words and then looked at Taylor. Her eyes widened and she shoved the blonde away as much as she could in the girl's grip. She was honestly pretty hurt by Taylor's words, but she didn't show it. She only coldly stared back. "Let me tell you something." Gabbie growled. "I might respect you, but I'm not afraid of you and I don't like being threatened."

She didn't break the gaze. "I came to you. I poured my heart out to you and I apologized to you and that's something you're going to say to me? If that's the kind of relationship you want, where after everything I just said to you, you still say something like that to me, I don't know that I'm the one who's crazy around here."

Gabbie eyed the blonde, giving Taylor another chance. "Is that really how you want things to start or should I just take my bag and get out of here?"

Taylor was unfazed by Gabbie's reaction. Her voice was soft, but firm.

"Gabbie," she said. "I get it. I see where you're coming from. But I'm just saying that if you want a good working relationship with me, this part is non-negotiable. You deal with a lot of shit in this business, and there's a lot I can take, but if Akashi called Cassie a coward, I'd hit her right in the mouth. Understand? That's how I feel. So if we're gonna work together again, you gotta know that this one tiiiiny little detail is part of the deal."

She put her hands on her hips and stopped leaning against the counter. "You said you'd do whatever it takes. If you want my blessing, this is how you get it."

"It's insulting to me that'd you'd even say it... and like that." Gabbie's features softened but she crossed her arms under her chest.

"If I came here just to talk trash about Elliot, I wouldn't have come here at all. I wouldn't have apologized to you, twice. I told you why I said what I said and you brushed it aside. You don't want me to say anything about her and that's non negotiable, well, me being treated like more than someone who might just talk trash about her is non negotiable for me, too."

Gabbie looked down and stared at the ground. She wasn't sure what else she could say. "I thought being here was enough for you..." She added quietly.

Taylor knew it was wrong, but she was just not in the mood. She felt the outburst welling up inside her, and she just couldn't stop it.

"Ohhhh, my fucking Jesus fucking GAWD!" She shouted, with her hands as much as with her voice. "ONE WORD! That's all I want to hear. JUST SAY OKAY! FUCK! Everyone's gotta have such a fucking problem with EVERYTHING here!"

She jabbed her finger at Gabbie. "You think that showing up here and being honest for once means that no one else can get a word in edgewise? You're really gonna come in here and do whatever it takes, but right out of the fucking gate we hit a wall and it's this?!

"If you wanna train here, that's great, but whatever you accomplished as a kickboxer means fucking dick. Your history with the Elliots means nothing. If you wanna be an elite wrestler, you came to the right place, but instead of going on about how you felt insulted that I would ask you not to insult my best friend, maybe just say OKAY, because if you can't do that then how long do you really think you'll stick around?"

Gabbie brushed Taylor's hand aside and she furrowed her brow. "No!" She growled back. "I expect when I show up and speak honestly, that I don't have it thrown back in my face! You care more about that one word than anything else I said! That's what I have a problem with!"

Gabbie breathed heavily. "You want to tell me that the past doesn't mean anything while you're waving it in my face? I swallowed my pride to come here and I'll do anything you ask while I'm here but this isn't about training and that's why I have a problem with it. You threatened me and then got mad when I didn't like it."

Gabbie closed her eyes and looked down, trying to remain calm. She had one more thing to say. "So, if the situations were reversed, you would do what you're expecting of me? Just answer me that."

"I didn't threaten you," Taylor asserted, and waved her hand in the air with a sour face. "And yeah, obviously I would. Why wouldn't I? I've given up way harder things than that to get where I am. Is your pride really this delicate? Because like... goddamn."

"Pulling someone close, and whispering something in that tone... is a threat." Gabbie said. She stared at Taylor until she felt Taylor understood.

Gabbie then looked down and blushed. "But, fine. If you say that, then I won't. I didn't come here to talk trash about Elliot. I came here to train and be the best."

Gabbie looked up at Taylor. "Yours is pretty delicate too..." She said, smiling just a bit. Hopefully she could clear the air with a bit of a joke, but if she was right, then Taylor wouldn't find it very funny at all.

"Pride's got nothing to do with it."

With that, Taylor turned to the fridge and pulled out a pitcher of fresh-squeezed tangerine juice. Then she went to a cabinet, moved a few things out of the way, and came back with a bottle of shochu. She put two tumbler glasses down and filled each one halfway with juice, and then unscrewed the cap from the bottle of shochu.

"If we're gonna do this, we might as well do it right," she said, tilting the bottle of clear, sinister liquid and carefully topping off each glass. "Maybe Akashi's rubbing off on me, but I could use a fucking drink, and we might as well drink to this."

She picked up both glasses and offered one to Gabbie.