IS YOUR FED HEAD A NARCISSIST? CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT!

Yes, yes she is.

Now on with the journey!

IS YOUR FED HEAD A NARCISSIST?
A true love story
An honest friendship
Seriously tho why bring Brandon Youngblood back into this?
— — — — —
MGM Grand
Hotel Room
After ReVival #1
Las Vegas, NV
January 22, 2022
03:00

Some would have been happy with the main event slot, as the return of PRIME Wrestling is no joke. A darling promotion caught in the nostalgic era, pulled forward and reVived. A major name in the industry, returning after years on the shelf, searching for his definitive moment. A moment long overdue. A man who, had PRIME never come back in the first place, could still call himself a Universal Champion in spirit. A legend. A grizzled vet. A paramount. The definition of a wrestler. It only made sense for him to win, to battle test his way through the tournament as its rightful victor. An old school act, awakening a wrestling company who will overtake High Octane, DEFIANCE, sVo and SHOOT as THE pinnacle of sport. It was always going to be his Hallmark Journey.

It was never going to be yours.

Jonathan-Christopher sits idly in the corner of their penthouse suite. Red flower petals lay scattered across the bedroom. Two bundles of roses rest at the foot of their bed, completely untouched. The window is opened a crack as the Vegas night time air blows through and creates a whirlwind, white curtains dancing in the air. Fluttering, if you will. It was to be the most romantic of nights anyone could dream of. The “upset”. The “statement”. The first step to a new beginning for both of them.

Left in utter shambles.

The Forever Man sulks in the corner. He’s been crying for some time. His Amazing Life Partner is nowhere to be seen, either. She fled the second his shoulders were pinned for the count of three.

She has not returned.

Jonathan-Christopher’s played the match throughout his mind many times. He’s had four hours to process. The diving crossbody, the move which was supposed to set up the splendid finish- he was caught. He was spiked into the mat. Pinned. Their hopes crushed in an instance.

The Vow of Virtue can do no more, other than run through the ending of his journey, a nightmare induced spectacle.

He cries into the night, head in his hands, sobbing as loudly as possible. He doesn’t have to be strong. The empty bed across from him is proof he has ruined it. Given the magnitude of this first round exit, Jonathan-Christopher’s run in the tournament comes to a crash and burn.

No second round, finals or storybook finale.

Jonathan-Christopher is a loser.

The Hallmark Journey ends before it could even begin.

— — — — —

MGM Grand
Hotel Room
Las Vegas, NV
November 10, 2022
06:00

“I called you both here because it’s time we are serious,” Jonathan-Christopher exclaims, standing in front of his bed. The sheets have been tucked strongly into the sides. It gives Vickie a sense of security, how the covers are locked into place, only for her to unravel. It’s up to Jonathan-Christopher to make sure the sheets are maintained to Vickie’s exact specifications. For now, however, Pretty in Pink is not present. Darin Zion and Tristan-Crispin Gladhappy sit on the floor, staring at The Vow of Virtue. TCG snacks through a bag of Lays potato chips and Darin Zion is empty handed, with a smug look on his face.

“Lindsay Troy is determined to break our spirits,” Jonathan-Christopher continues. “I will not allow it. Vickie dreams of becoming the most successful wrestling manager of all time and it is up to us to make her wildest dreams come true!”

“Amen, brother,” Tristan-Crispin says with a mouth full of chips, half of them spilling onto the hotel floor. Meanwhile, Zion nods with enthusiasm.

A much more determined and confident Jonathan-Christopher is seemingly in charge. This is not the same man from the beginning of the year. He’s sure of himself. Or, at least… he’s able to make people believe he is.

“Two months ago I would never have said the name Brandon Youngblood,” Jonathan-Christopher shivers momentarily. “Lindsay Troy is a crooked leader. She sees the love between Vickie and I, comparing it to her own insignificant life.”

“She’s jealous!” Interjects Tristan-Crispin, more chips falling from his mouth. Gladhappy wraps his arms around himself for a self-induced nuzzle.

“She’s something, alright,” Zion adds. Merely obvious to some and not others, REAL LOVE’s had a detailed history with Lindsay. Translation: Troy hates Zion. Reality: Many people hold a membership.

“Yes, she is something alright,” adds the Forever Man. “And jealous, too. So she’s splitting us up. Vickie can’t be at ringside for our match, Darin.”

Zion makes a pukey face re: LT’s decision.

“And we can’t be anywhere near yours, dear cousin.”

TCG keeps munching, not a care in the world.

“This is why Vickie’s not here. We need to be comfortable being uncomfortable, she says.”

Anger slowly courses through Jonathan-Christopher’s veins. There’s tension in his neck, a stabbing pain deep within his bellybutton. He’s trying to stay strong, attempting to lead the ship into battle… the convoy into true love…

He’s getting there.

“Brandon Youngblood started this downward spiral when he defeated me in the Hallmark Tournament. For a while there I never got over the loss…”

The ALP reflects. He lifts his head and raises his voice with gusto.

“However, I have finally realized who’s truly at fault.”

Jonathan-Christopher looks at his best friend. Next, his eyes slowly fall to his cousin. He wants his crew to feel the torment he had felt for so long, before revealing the perpetrator. Now able to name the person who’s provided him and Vickie an unspeakable amount of harm, for an entire calendar year, it gives the Forever Man a sense of strength. It’s as if he can channel the pain and responsibility he felt…

To someone else.

“Lindsay Troy.”

It all makes sense. Lindsay’s seen the Hall’s up close and personal during their brief run in DEFIANCE. She’s jealous of them and how they breathe life into one another. Troy was enraged. Furious. Therefore, Lindsay abused her leadership powers. And what better way to bring two people down than to give them the most nightmarish tasks possible.

Over the course of five months, the Hall’s were spent. Brandon Youngblood. Survivor. Gross and disgusting Bobby Dean. Fines, suspensions from ringside and more. LT won’t allow true, honest expression in her organization. Instead, she will bask in the glory of holding these love birds down.

“Not this time you won’t,” Jonathan-Christopher remarks as both Darin and Tristan-Crispin wonder who he’s speaking to.

The Timid Tiger is timid no more. With each racing thought he’s hellbound to prove Vickie can have her moment and they can express their love in a safe environment, free of ridicule and slander.

Jonathan-Christopher sees the empty king size bed. His mind wanders back to the time where he had every hope in the world. This was the same room they were to make love in after he defeated Brandon Youngblood in January. It was going to be, dare he say it…

Better than their wedding night.

Because not only did Vickie dream of marriage with the right man. As it has been said before, she dreamt of becoming the most successful wrestling manager in the world.

Brandon Youngblood should’ve been step one.

Jonathan-Christopher sighs as he holds back a tear. This tear, however, is not one of sadness. It’s a feeling of unjustness. The Vow of Virtue drops to his knees while Darin and Tristan-Crispin look at each other with confusion. Neither has a clue what kind of breakdown their Love Convoy teammate is about to go through.

Soon they realize Jonathan-Christopher isn’t having a breakdown at all. The old Jonathan-Christopher might have. This man is different.

Revitalized.

Hall reaches under the bed and reveals a book. He holds it in the air like it projects an aura of power.

“Behold!” He bellows. “The DSM-V!”

Perhaps TCG and DZ would’ve been less confused had Jonathan-Christopher Hall had a mental breakdown.

“What’s the D…S…” Gladhappy’s voice trails.

“M,” The Forever Man finishes the statement.

“The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders,” Hall announces. Adding after a brief pause, “Fifth Edition.”

Still doesn’t register with Zion or Gladhappy.

Doesn’t matter. JC has the manual tagged. He flips open to the earmarked spot, placing an open finger on the text and running it across the words as he speaks.

“Narcissistic personality disorder. Defined as comprising a pervasive pattern of grandiosity, a constant need for admiration and a lack of empathy. Or in other words,” he pauses. “Lindsay Troy.”

Zion’s eyes light up. He gets it! Tristan-Crispin keeps chewing away on the last remaining chips, faster than before, spellbound by the manual his cousin reads openly.

“Indicated by at least five of the following many points…” JC goes on.

One.

“Exaggerated sense of self-importance,” pause for reflection. “Lindsay Troy.”

Two.

“Sense of entitlement requiring constant, excessive admiration,” pause for reflection. “Lindsay Troy.”

Three.

“Expect to be recognized as superior even without achievements that warrant it,” pause for reflection. “Lindsay Troy.”

Four.

“Believe they are superior and can only associate with equally special people,” pause. “Lindsay Troy.”

Five.

“Monopolize conversations and belittle or look down on people they perceive as inferior,” this time Jonathan-Christopher pauses but the three of them say it together.

“Lindsay Troy.”

Hall closes the book.

“Our boss is a narcissist. She literally fits into every category. It’s unbelievable! Vickie was the one who pointed it out, she has a friend who works in mental health,” Jonathan-Christopher mentions. “Lindsay is the nemesis behind everything my Amazing Life Partner and I stand for.”

He isn’t finished. Jonathan-Christopher kneels down again and pulls another item out from under the majestic bed.

It’s a chess board.

Hall opens the board and the pieces fall from the sides. He begins to place each pawn, knight and rook, among the others, in their rightful spots. Most chess pieces have a face taped to them. The white pieces have clear enemies of the Love Convoy while the black ones have the “good guys”. The white queen sports Lindsay Troy’s face. The white king is Brandon Youngblood. The tag team champions are flanked at both ends as the rooks. The rest is too much detail to get into for now.

“Make no mistake gentlemen, we are in a narcissistic game of chess,” Hall articulates. “A game where the white pieces not only make the first move…”

He takes hold of the white queen “Lindsay Troy” and begins to knock off the pawns and other black chess pieces that DON’T have one of their faces taped to it.

“But a game where they make every move.”

Zion looks none too happy with this reveal as Jonathan-Christopher knocks piece by piece off the board until only the black king (himself), a bishop (Darin Zion), a knight (Tristan-Crispin) and the queen (duh) remain.

Hall looks to take one of the white bishops (Nate Colton) and do away with Darin Zion.

REAL LOVE screams in agony but the DZ piece only tips over for a second before flipping right back up. Zion is captivated. It’s like he’s witnessed a magic trick…… when in reality there’s probably a magnet on the bottom of the bishop, holding it upright.

“I’m here to tell you both that while the white pieces make the moves…” Jonathan-Christopher grins sadistically. “They can’t wipe the board entirely clean.”

Zion claps like this is the most amazing display he’s ever seen! TCG empties the rest of the Lays into his mouth and Jonathan-Christopher goes back to reaching underneath the bed.

“We’ve got work to do,” The Vow of Virtue states, slowly taking out CONVOY sign after CONVOY sign, it’s like a clown car under there. Signs are followed by a mega horn and then a steering wheel. Darin snatches that up quickly. “We are going to strategize for our match. Lindsay may not allow us to be at each other’s side but we will cheat. Our narcissistic boss wants to censor our cause? We’ll only create more of an outcry!”

TC and DZ give a RAHHH RAHHH alongside their teammate before Jonathan-Christopher rises and directs everyone to the living room.

“We’ll strategize in there for our matches,” Hall says while the three of them walk out of the bedroom.

…only for Zion to scoot in for a quick second, forgetting his steering wheel. Darin sees the DSM-5 sitting on the floor so he opens it to the bookmarked page about narcissistic personality disorder. He places his eyes upon a random bullet point.

“Have secret feelings of insecurity, shame, vulnerability and humiliation…”

He humpfs to himself before closing the book and gives his head a shake.

“Vickie ain’t lying. That’s Lindsay Troy, too.”

— — — — —

Unknown Location and Time

He’s very uneasy. His heart hammers like it’s about to jump out of his chest. The intensity is something he’s never felt before. For as low as this year has been, nothing… absolutely NOTHING compares to this moment.

To his knowledge, he believes he’s passed out a couple of times already. He knows he’s puked twice. He’s pissed himself once, too, on the way down here. Clearly it’s not something he’s proud of and there’s no doubt about it, if anyone else found out, he’ll deny it forever. This incident dies with him. Luckily, he had a change of clothes. He has also been drinking a ton of water to make up for lost fluids, so even though he can’t grab a shower, he doesn’t smell like urine.

Simply feels like it.

He waves back and forth. He’s sweating beyond appropriate amounts.

“Fucking calm down. Fuck, fuck,” he mumbles to himself. A short time ago he displayed such conviction. He led the charge, he was righting the ship. She was not there and dammit, dammit it didn’t fucking matter because he was still fueled by her love! Their boss could separate them physically but this time, hell no, Troy would not get them to crack mentally.

“Relax, Jonathan-Christopher, relax,” he mutters again. He feels faint. Is he on the verge of passing out? Jesus, can’t he wait until he gets back to his car?

A rustle of leaves is heard in the distance. It’s too late, he’s committed. He’s clearly been found so there’s nowhere he can go to erase this from happening.

Crunch, crunch, crunch, the leaves break apart under whatever is coming his way.

“It’s for the greater good,” JCH reminds himself out loud, in the hopes that what’s coming towards him may be able to hear this sentence, as well.

CRUNCH, CRUNCH, CRUNCH, the sound hammers through his temples. It’s hard to believe but this might be the worst he’s ever felt. The loss to Brandon Youngblood didn’t destroy him as badly. Desperation, in its truest form, can do things to people they didn’t think was possible.

CRUNCH, CRUNCH, CRUNCHHHHH.

“Are you Jonathan-Christopher?” A voice asks sternly.

Even though no one has come into view, Hall knows he has to answer and puts on his bravest face possible while eking out a faint “yes- yes it is?” with a random inflection like he’s unsure of the answer.

A burly man emerges through the darkness. Heavy set, black leather jacket, beard, balding, tattoos up and down his neck, bags under his eyes. He doesn’t seem inviting and yet he’s not here to cause a problem, either.

He’s here to do business.

“Well I have it,” he states clearly, “Your end?”

The man is not going to entertain small talk.

“I- well- uh-” Jonathan-Christopher’s voice quivers as does his body. Hall reaches into the back pocket of his jeans and takes out a wad of dollar bills. “It’s all here.”

The biker man remains stoic, taking the stack of money from Jonathan-Christopher before snapping off the elastic band it’s wrapped in and pushes his fingers through the specialized paper.

Hall adds, “I would never do you wrong…”

The biker raises his eyes but not his head in order to make eye contact with JC.

“Oh don’t worry,” the man comments. “If it’s not the correct amount, I’ll know where to find you.”

Jonathan-Christopher gulps. This is something he didn’t think of.

The man reaches into his jacket and pulls out a small padlocked black case. He hands it over to Hall before also distributing paperwork.

Jonathan-Christopher eyes the black case and the paperwork. He takes them both.

“This is…” Hall’s having trouble with his words, although he isn’t shaking nearly as much. “Legal, right?”

The man grins with a sense of mischief in his voice. “It’s as legal as you want it to be.”

Jonathan-Christopher exhales alongside another nervous twitch before folding the papers into his back pocket and tucking the case under his own winter jacket.

The man walks away, back to where he came from, crunching the leaves under his large framed boots. The noises suddenly don’t seem as intimidating. The worst is over with.

“I did it,” Jonathan-Christopher tells himself, looking down at the black case and adding another mental reminder. “Emergencies only.”

Hall can feel the tension mounting. Deep down, he knows they are out of excuses. Another loss to Brandon Youngblood would be too difficult to handle. Vickie expects her ALP to take charge and become the white knight on the PRIME chess board she is worthy of.

This iteration of the LOVE CONVOY has to succeed. Not only is Darin Zion along for the ride but now JC’s cousin is, too.

They overcame Bobby Dean. They’ll right the wrongs with Youngblood. Then they’ll come for the Tag Team Champions and their narcissistic boss won’t be able to silence them any longer.

Jonathan-Christopher slowly paces to his car.

“Remember JC,” he says to himself. “Just in case of emergency.”

And he repeats these words over and over.

“Just in case.”

“Just in case.”

“Just in case.”

— — — — —

MGM Grand
Hotel Room
After ReVival #19
Las Vegas, NV
November 18, 2022
03:00

They did it!

He carries her up the flight of stairs and into their majestic penthouse suite. He slowly walks over the petals on the floor, leading into the bedroom. He hears the wondrous crunching of leaves under his boots as he inches closer. Her arms are wrapped around him, she can’t stop gazing into his eyes.

“Oh Jonathan-Christopher,” she says joyously. “What an amazing journey this is!”

He playfully tosses her onto the bed. She leans back and gives her head a shake, her blonde hair falls in every direction. He is captivated by her beauty and driven by her lighthearted demeanor.

“Baby, I love you so much,” he asserts himself on the bed beside her. She immediately wraps her arms around him. “We are doing it right this time, aren’t we?”

He asks for reassurances, she is quick to provide it tenfold.

“Yes we are, my dear,” she says with a face full of love, her eyes beaming, her smile as wide as ever. Her teeth, while imperfect to most, are absolutely stunning to him.

He holds her face. She giggles with a sense of passion.

“I love you,” she states and nothing more.

“And I love you,” he easily replies.

They rip open the covers and fall into place. Rose petals fly across the room but they do not care. Jonathan-Christopher Hall and his best friend Darin Zion have defeated Brandon Youngblood and Nate Colton, the second roadblock thrown at them by the most narcissistic boss in the history of wrestling.

In the end, it didn’t matter.

True love prevailed.

The Hallmark Journey is on target!

Jonathan-Christopher opens his eyes and stares at the bed in front of him. Mere hours before ReVival #19, the bed is laid out to Vickie’s exact desires. Rose petals cover the floor. A bouquet of red roses sits in the middle.

“We will do this right,” Jonathan-Christopher remarks to best friend Darin Zion.

The MGM Grand Garden Arena awaits. The penthouse suite will stay on the ready until it’s over.

…And the little black case tucked underneath the bed, sitting beside the DSM-5 will, too.

For now, though, Jonathan-Christopher’s mind wanders to their Hallmark moment as he makes his exit with Zion.

“Oh dearest, Jonathan-Christopher. This is my dream come true,” Vickie rejoices.

“Indeed it is,” he replies. “A perfect story.”

“I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

And now he’s going to make it happen.

There is no other option.