Leap of Faith

Nikolette had been pretty pumped lately with everything that had been happening. A good, tough match that had led to her and Mayu becoming more than just friends. (she hoped) and getting to kick out some dastardly heel that had been picking on girls lately. She was a mechanic and partially a janitor but she felt like she was really cleaning house lately on all fronts. She had just wished that she had more time to train. More time to wrestle. her work as the head mechanic left her busier than most girls.

Still, she had an idea of what was going on. She had seen Avalanche. She had watched the title fight and all the rest. Something about it had bugged her and it wasn't the controversial ending that had left ripples in the AFW universe. Angel and her had debuted together. Nikolette had won the match. Why, then, was it that Angel was getting picked for title matches and to head up groups? There had to be a reason. She had thought about it for a while now and as she marched towards the locker room, she tried to work out what she should say. Should she say anything? Her stomach had butterflies in it.

When she got to the locker room, she marched right toward Angel's locker. She knew where it was. She knew where they all were. She just hoped Angel was there. Or maybe she didn't. But whens he saw the Latina beauty, her heart raced. She balked and let out a soft gasp. She swallowed it down hard. What she was about to do... was it ok? It was what a wrestler would do. Was that what she was? She hook the jitters away. It was exactly what she came to find out.

"Angel..." She called out, trying to sound as friendly as possible. She didn't want to be antagonistic now, did she?

Angel, most definitely, had not been pretty pumped lately.

As much as she wanted to, she couldn't get her match at Avalanche off of her mind. It had been a few weeks since, and while she had avoided any major injuries from her giant fall at the end of the match, her body was still sore, still trying to recover back to one hundred percent. Every time she felt an ache run down her body, she was reminded of how she had blown the match, and with that, any hopes she had of earning the title she had so desperately fought for since joining the AFW.

To make things even worse for her, she had heard the announcement about the dissolving of the AFW's ranking system, and with that, she had watched everything she had worked for go down the drain. She had worked her ass off to stay high up in the list of the company's ten best wrestlers, fighting tooth and nail to stay in the upper portion of the list, to keep her name known and respected, and now? Now she had lost everything she had worked for. That bitch Lukretia had gotten what she had apparently wanted before Avalanche, gotten the Latina out of the rankings completely now. Angel had nothing left for her now, and the thought both utterly depressed her and completely pissed her off.

So here she was now, at her locker deep in one of the AFW's many locker rooms. Her face was blank as she grabbed stuff out of it, tossing half of it into a duffle bag at her feet, and everything else into a nearby trash can. She was getting out of here. Whether for good or just to get some time off, she didn't know yet. She just wanted to get out of this damn arena and get as far away as she could, clear her mind for a bit, take a break from all the recent stress.

As Nikolette entered the locker room, Angel didn't seem to notice. At least, if she did, she was paying the girl no mind. Even when the mechanic called out to her, Angel didn't reply at first, snatching her Red Jaguars t-shirt out of her locker and turning to chuck it into the garbage. She glanced towards Nikolette for a moment afterwards, then turned back to the locker, starting to sort through it again. "What is it, chica?" She finally replied, her voice lacking it's usual upbeat tone.

Dangit! This was going to be harder than she thought. She swallowed hard. "Listen..." She began and then stopped. "I mean... I saw the match. Y'all fought pretty darn hard." The mechanic then glanced down. She inhaled. "Pouring salt into wounds like this. It wasn't her style. "But..." She began. "I don't really get why you were put into that match..." She sucked in a breath after she spoke her words. That wasn't going to go over very well. Still, she was a little ready.

"I didn't come here ta make a big stink about it. If I wanted that, I woulda gone an made one of them promos. I wanted to talk to you face ta face. I just wanted an explanation. Maybe ya don't know? She said, shrugging a little. "But You've been picked fer the rankins, had all sortsa title matches and been a team captain. We've had about the same amount of matches, so.. what is it that's getting you picked for all this stuff an not me?" Maybe Angel knew some trick that Nikolette didn't?

Angel stopped her shuffling through the locker with a sigh. Obviously, she wasn't going to get a moment of peace to finish what she was doing, so she turned back towards Nikolette again, leaning back against the closed locker beside of her own, folding her arms slowly over her ample bust. She listened to Nikolette's words, her face remaining blank all the while. She waited until the mechanic was done, before finally responding to her, her voice still flat, though a tiny, tiny hint of a smirk appeared upon her face, the edges of her mouth subtle turning upwards. It had taken her a moment, but she finally recognized who Nikolette was, remembering her first match in the AFW against her.

"Why was I picked for that match, chica?" She replied to Nikolette, her voice low as she stared towards the girl. "That's easy. Because I deserved it more than any girl in this place. I earned my damn place in that match when I led my team of mid-card nobodies to winning in the Temple Games. No one counted on my team winning, especially not against a team that had Andrian, Natalia, and that skank Heather on it. People counted us out from the beginning, but I led those girls to victory while the other teams pissed around with each other."

She paused for a moment, watching Nikolette's reaction before continuing. "And why was I chosen to be captain? Why did I get those other title matches? Because I earned those rights, chica. Yeah, maybe I got lucky when they first made the damned rankings list, but I've spent every moment of my time here since then working my ass off to maintain a high spot on the list." She then stepped forward, the Latina taking a slow step in Nikolette's direction, gazing into her eyes, her smirk widening slightly. "What have you done around here, huh? Changed a few light bulbs? Scrubbed a few toilets? Of course you're not going to be picked or wanted for anything important. No one wants to see some filthy janitor trying to win a belt that she has no chance of getting..."

She took another step forward, just a small amount of space between Angel and Nikolette now. "I mean, be honest chica. Would you want to see someone like that in the ring?"

Nikolette listened to Angel's response. She thought the girl had earned the title shot because of how well she did in the Temple Games. With that, she was definitely sure that Angel had done a good job. But, couldn't she have done good as well? She knew how good Mayu was and she had seen how the other girls were.

It was the rest of it that Nikolette was curious about. Angel admitted that she had lucked into the rankings but what the Latina beauty said to her, it hurt. Nikolette worked hard. Not just hard at wrestling but hard at her job as a mechanic. If anyone was putting in effort, it was her, to maintain two careers.

Nikolette's breath quickened when she watched Angel step closer but she didn't budge. "I got... just as many wins as y'all!" She said, knitting her eyebrows defensively. "An half as many losses! Plus, I've beaten one of the girls on your team and not just that, It was a tough match an everyone loved it!" Nikolette pushed herself forward, letting theiir chests barely touch. "An... I've beaten you too!" She said. "only reason I ain't where you are is cause they won't let me fight anyone! People like me! I have fans here, ya know! It's cause I put in hard work too! I give every match my all! Not only that, but I put in extra work as well. I ain't just workin hard once, but twice!"

Nikolette let out a sigh., a little hot breath that she tried to keep from washing over Angel, but their proximity made it difficult. "I ain't here ta start trouble." She said. "Callin ya out... or anythin like that but... I beat ya once an I know I can do it again. You work hard. I work hard. Once people see that, then maybe the gals upstairs'll take me as seriously my fans do..."

A slightly amused look crossed Angel's face as Nikolette pushed forward, just barely pushing against the Latina's ample breasts. She listened as Nikolette ranted on, never once tearing her gaze from the girl's eyes. When the brunette finally stopped, Angel took another step towards her, so that her chest pushed up closer against Nikolette's, leaning in so that her and Nikolette's faces were mere inches away.

"You beat one of the girls on my team? Am I supposed to be impressed, chica? Do you think I couldn't beat them either?" Her smirk grew wider, her voice growing playful, but in a mean sort of way. "And bragging about beating me? Oh come on!" She let out a laugh, shaking her head for a moment before continuing on. "You know I went easy on you in that match, right? If I had really wanted to win that one, I would have done so." She lifted one hand, waving it in an idle sort of way. "I figured I shouldn't go all out in my first match. Didn't want to give any potential enemies or rivals too much information about me that early, you know?"

With that, she slid forward another pair of short steps, even closer to Nikolette than before. "You say you're not calling me out, but...those words, chica. They definitely sound to me like you're calling me out. Do you really want to test your luck, chica?" Angel's eyes lit up with those words, the Latina starting to feel antsy. She had planned on getting out of this place and getting some time off, but another match seemed like a great idea to her to help blow off some stress. "I can promise you, chica...you get in that ring with me again, you won't be walking out a winner."

Nikolette's cheeks reddened at Angel's words and her closeness. Her mouth hung open and she panted hotly against Angel's face, feeling Angel's breath mix with her own as they stared into each other. She could understand the seriousness of her words and Angel's reaction to it, but the one thing she said. That Angel had supposedly admitted to Nikolette made her eyes widened.

"Y-You're lyin!" Nikolette said. Her body moved on her own and she felt herself shoving Angel away from her. "Sayin that! Goin easy on me!" Nikolette shook her head. "That ain't right! That AIN'T right!" Her voice cracked as she scowled at Angel. "You ain't any better than me! There ain't any difference!" Her mind screamed at her to stop her words and her actions but she couldn't.

"I don't like makin a scene. It's just you an me here right now. I just had some questions, but... I can't handle someone who is sayin words like that! I wanted a match. I wanted answers. It wasn't so bad, but... yeah... I guess you're itchin for another embarrassment!" She said as she found herself staring at Angel fiercely.

Angel stumbled back, away from Nikolette as the mechanic shoved her away, but rather than getting mad about it, she simply laughed, in a cruel, mocking sort of way.

"You think it's not? You think I'm not better than you?" Her hands slid up, cocking themselves on the Latina's hips in a cocky, confident manner, as she tilted her head to the side, grinning at Nikolette. "Think back, all those years ago, chica. When I let you pin me and get the win, you looked surprised, like you couldn't believe I had stayed down like that. Don't you realize now that I stayed down to give you the win?" She stared towards Nikolette, letting her words sink in for a moment. "Just admit it. You know it's the truth, and you know good and well what will happen if you get back in that ring with me. That being said..." She grinned a little bit wider, her white teeth flashing as she lifted her arms, spreading them out wide. "Like you said, it's just you and me here right now, chica. If you think you're so much better than me, them why even bother with the match? Show me what you've got right now if you're so much better than me!"

Nikolette shook her head at Angel's words. "Yer just lyin!" She said. "I was surprised cause I didn't think i had what it took. I did!" She furrowed her brow and looked at Angel. "Just takin a dive. To look good? For my sake? So no one could figure ya out? I've seen every one a yer matches, there ain't nothin you've done that I ain't already seen an figured out. Couldn't forget it if i tried!" She said, pointing to her head. "Besides... if what yer sayin is true, then what opportunity are ya waitin for to STOP rollin over fer everyone? Is that the excuse yer usin for losin ta Akashi? Sarah... Heather?"

Nikolette's heart was pumping fast. She could feel adrenaline pumpin through her body as her fists twitched into a clench. Angel was goading her and she couldn't fall for it. "I ain't like them other gals. Makin a mess o things. I wanna fight ya in the ring. Throwin a punch here... it ain't right..." She said, standing her ground, but puffing out her chest a bit. She really wanted to hit the Latina girl but if she did, wouldn't that make her the same as all the other bad girls that ran through here? Maybe her words already did that much.

Angel narrowed her eyes at Nikolette, listening to her words again. "You think I'm rolling over for everyone else? Please." She lowered her arms, taking another step back towards Nikolette, tsking under her breath towards the girl. "Akashi, I'll admit I was out of my element against her...at the time. She barely beat me there, and if she got back into the ring with me now? I'd throw her fat ass right back out. Sarah? In a fair fight, I could have taken her easily. But putting me in a damn hardcore match against her? Her favored kind of match? Please. They were stacking the odds against me, but again, Sarah barely won that. If we fought again on fair terms, I'd have her begging for mercy."

"As for Heather?" She took another step towards Nikolette, her eyes narrowing further. "Again with a damn hardcore match! What's up with all these bitches around here not able to fight without getting weapons involved, huh? If those cowards dropped the weapons and fought with them, you'd see just how good they really are!"

Angel's heart was beating just as hard as Nikolette's, but she was trying not to show it too much, trying to stay calm. She wanted to jump onto Nikolette, to let out all of her frustrations on the girl, but she wasn't about to make the first move. She would tempt the mechanic into doing it for her. "Sounds to me like you're scared, chica. But y'know what? You're right, you're right." Angel shrugged lightly towards her, her grin somehow growing even wider, even more cruel in appearance. "You're not like the other girls around here. The other girls around here don't spend their time scrubbing shit out of the toilets, y'know?"