Who Needs Friends?

[Miles]

The camera revealed a close up of on the face of Curt Hawkins. Dark circles had begun to form underneath of his eyes, his face was unshaven and his greasy, long hair hung down to his shoulders. After releasing a deep breath, his posture slumped and he began to rub a pair of fingers into the corners of his eyes. The camera began to back up to reveal that he was sitting on the edge of a bed in a hotel room. A hand held out a cup of tea to him which he carefully took and soon gave a nod of appreciation and a soft smile to the gesture. It was supplied to him by Kaitlyn, one half of the Chick Busters. The fit blond looked somewhat concerned by Curt's disheveled appearance which had become more and more disordered with passing weeks. Very carefully, she took a seat beside him.

Kaitlyn: "Look, Curt, I'll admit it. I'm a little concerned about you."

Hawkins had been Kaitlyn's date to yearly the Dinner with the Diva's that took place prior to Wrestle Mania. Since that time they had formed a small bond.

Kaitlyn: "You've been acting really..well.."

Hawkins drunk some of the tea and lowered his head. His eyes remained firmly locked on the floor. Kaitlyn seemed to dance around the sensitive subject of Curt's attitude.

Kaitlyn: "I mean..what you helped do to Cody Rhodes.."

The Diva quickly began to remember hearing Rhodes' screams as his face was engulfed in flames. She was already beginning to regret letting Curt into her room.

Curt Hawkins: "That was just business."

Kaitlyn: "Was it? What about when you jumped Trent? It really looked like you were going to go after A.J."

Curt Hawkins: "No.."

The young wrestler shook his head and turned his head towards Kaitlyn.

Curt Hawkins: "I wasn't going to hurt her. "

Kaitlyn: "She's my BEST FRIEND."

Curt Hawkins: "I WASN'T going to hurt her. Jesus Christ. I was just trying to get into Trent's head.."

Since arriving in the EBWF, Hawkins had been at the throat of his former friend Trent Barreta. What appeared to begin as merely a rivalry had become very personal Curt's frequent attacks seemed to grow more violent each time.

Kaitlyn: "And if Zack hadn't been there.."

Kaitlyn didn't seem to want to contemplate any further what might have gone down if Ryder hadn't prevented Curt from attacking Trent and even potentially A.J. Upon hearing the name of his former tag team partner, Curt's face contorted into a vicious scowl. His apologetic mannerisms had faded.

Curt Hawkins: "I don't want to talk about Zack."

Kaitlyn: "Curt.."

She slowly placed a hand on top of one of his own.

Kaitlyn: "I don't know what happened between you and Zack, or Trent for that matter, but you have GOT to let it go. It's just eating away at you. Have you looked at yourself lately?"

Curt Hawkins: "So you think they're better than me?"

Curt's disposition had taken an even nastier turn. He turned a sharp glare towards Kaitlyn.

Kaitlyn: "No, no! Curt! That isn't what I mean! But this is what I'm talking about! If someone even mentions Zack or Trent you lose your mind!"

Curt Hawkins: "..Lose my mind.."

Hawkins ran his hands through his hair in frustration and let out another deep sigh.

Curt Hawkins: "If your so called best friends did to you what those two did to me.."

He trailed off and tried to keep his composure.

Curt Hawkins: "..you might be a little on edge too."

Kaitlyn: "And most importantly.."

Almost in a paranoid state, Kaitlyn looked over her shoulders a few times before bringing up the next subject.

Kaitlyn: "..This stuff with..Kane..you're losing everything that makes you who you are.."

Curt Hawkins: "..Who I am.."

Hawkins contemplated that phrase for a moment.

Curt Hawkins: "I know exactly who I am, Kaitlyn. But I don't think the rest of the world does yet. I am the guy who is going to beat the living hell out of Zack Ryder. When I heard I was facing him in the first round of the King of the RIng, I dropped to my knee's and I THANKED Kane. Because he made this possible. It's because of him that I get to hurt Zack. I get to hurt him for thinking he's better than me and leaving me behind. I absolutely cannot wait. And you should come down to the ring with me and watch.."

His hand gave Kaitlyn's a firm squeeze as he smiled towards her. Kaitlyn, however, seemed more than a little hesitant.

Kaitlyn: "Curt.."

Hawkins' smile disappeared and he began to speak to the female in a mocking tone.

Curt Hawkins: "You don't want to? Why? Because you're friends with Zack? He might be a champion but he's never going to get anywhere. He cares too much about being cheered by those moron fans. When you start thinking about yourself you might get somewhere too. And A.J.'s your friend, right? Well, she's getting awful cozy with that BACK STABBER Barreta. It's a matter of time before she ditches you. Come down to the ring with me. Watch me cripple Ryder and get on the winning team. Watch me win the King of the Ring."

His grip on her hand became a little tighter.

Kaitlyn: "Curt. This hurts.."

Curt Hawkins: "Ha! That's exactly what Zack's going to say! "Curt! This hurts! THIS HURTS!"

As Hawkins' voice began to raise, Kaitlyn slapped him firmly across his face. His head turned in the direction of the slap and Kaitlyn quickly got to her feet.

Kaitlyn: "Curt, I want you to get out. There's something wrong with you."

Hawkins rubbed his chin with a hateful look on his face. He brought himself to his feet as his jaw clenched tightly together.

Curt Hawkins: "There's nothing wrong with me. The only thing wrong with me is WASTING MY TIME on people like you."

The former Breakout Champion swiftly left the room and slammed the door behind him. Kaitlyn released an exhale of relief that the situation didn't escalate any further.

------

Most wrestling fans would probably remember Mikey Whipwreck from his stint in the original ECW. He was a lovable loser that looked nothing like a pro wrestler and usually took a ridiculous amount of punishment. During his prime he worked with legends like Mick Foley and Steve Austin. But all of the damage he took caused him to retire from the sport early, aside from an occasional indy show. He was still involved in the wrestling business, training a crop of new, young wrestlers. Amongst those in the EBWF included Zack Ryder, Trent Barreta and Curt Hawkins. Now thirty eight years old, Mikey looked a bit different from his heyday. He had put on some weight and was now completely bald. Concerned with one of his trainee's, Mikey had traveled to Utah to have a chat with Curt Hawkins. The two sat in a brightly lit diner in a corner booth. Mikey had purchased lunch for his former pupil but Hawkins hadn't touched a bite of his food. In fact, he barely even made eye contact. His sight remained fixated on the window beside him, gazing out at the streets. He did, however, take an occasional sip of coffee from a mug front of him.

Mikey Whipwreck: "Alright, Curt, this is really starting to get weird."

Curt Hawkins: "There's nothing wrong with me."

Mikey Whipwreck: "I don't think that's the case. You look like..well..you look like hell, kid.."

Curt slowly turned his sight towards the ECW alumni.

Curt Hawkins: "I should be training to win the King of the Ring. Not hanging out in some dump."

Mikey Whipwreck: "And your attitude, man. What's up? You don't talk to Trent or Zack anymore?"

Curt Hawkins: "I hate them."

Curt's grip on his mug tightened.

Curt Hawkins: "Zack is my opponent. I'm going to tear through him."

Mikey Whipwreck: "Why would you want to hurt Zack? You should be proud that you all made it this far. That match you all had at Wrestle Mania was great. You and Zack could steal the show Monday night. Why would you want to ruin that?"

Curt Hawkins: "Because he tried to ruin my life."

Mikey slowly shook his head in dismay.

Mikey Whipwreck: "Curt, Zack and Trent don't have it out for you. Trust me. You've got to get your head on straight."

Curt Hawkins: "I can see very clearly, thanks."

Mikey Whipwreck: You can? Or do you see whatever Kane tells you to? Did you like what he did to Cody Rhodes?"

Curt Hawkins: "Yeah. Yeah, I did."

Hawkins responded in a very snide manner.

Curt Hawkins: "Less competition for me. But I wish it could have been Zack. I wish it could have been him screaming like that. That would have made me really happy."

Mikey Whipwreck: "Curt. Listen to yourself. Kane's done a number on your head, kid."

Curt Hawkins: "Yeah? Has he? I don't think so. He's just shown me a better way of doing things. I like what I'm doing. I like what I've become. And I'm going to love what I do to Zack."

Mikey reached out, trying to grab Curt's wrist since it was shaking with anger. But Hawkins stood to his feet and violently slammed his mug onto the floor, causing it to burst. The entire cafe was looking his way now as he pointed a finger in his trainers face.

Curt Hawkins: "Don't. Touch me. I'd stomp you right now but I'm not going to waste my time on some, cripple. You're not proud of me, Mikey. You're proud of Zack and Trent. But that's fine. Because I don't need you or them. But do you know what I do need from you? I need you to tune into Warfare this week. I need you to watch me knock Zack unconscious. You and everyone else love precious Zack so much. But you're already rooting for the wrong person. I'M the one who deserves to be cheered, I'M the one who should be a champion and I'M the one who's going to win the King of the Ring. And one last thing. The next time you feel like trying to show up to mooch off of my spotlight and draw some attention to yourself? I'll forget the fact that you're a beaten down nobody and knock your teeth out."

Similar to his confrontation with Kaitlyn, Hawkins angrily walked off and shoved the diner door open. Mikey slumped back in his booth and rubbed the side of his head in shock.

[Juan Ramirez]

BACKSTABBER Barreta has some ring to it!

Pretty intense Miles! I loved this.