Ground Rules

It had been a week since her battle with Allison. It was a victory, but after that night there had been no kind of celebration. Bonnie was stressing out, all these terrible worrying feelings had been tearing her in two. She had barely lived at all in the week since her fight with Allison, trying to decide what was a wise decision and the smart thing to do. Or rather, the right thing. In her living room sat a briefcase that contained the contracts of Allison Watson and Lu Jao Jocelyn atop a coffee table. The Texan made a mental note to hand those over to Mercy for safe keeping, she seemed very trustworthy with that sort of stuff.

After batting the idea around in her head, with her own morals and fears, Bonnie decided to stop sulking about the events regarding Emily as she couldn't fix a thing without action. She was still afraid of what would happen though. She feared from her lover, friends and sibling being assaulted. But worst of all, she feared she'd lose Emily completely.

Bonnie got dressed in her place, not bothering to tell Clyde or Duffy about her plans. She didn't want to worry them and felt confident that she could handle Allison all by herself. She didn't even care if Allison ignored her, she knew what she was going to do with or without that crazy Brit... And yet she needed her.

Grabbing her phone, Bonnie quickly thumbed out a message, after thinking about her choice of words carefully, feeling a sense of awkwardness when she wrote it.

"I ain't even know if she blocked me..." Bonnie said aloud before sending her message to Allison's phone

"Hey. We need to talk."

It was a full day before Allison's reply, and when it came it was short.

How does your victory taste?

Bonnie was already making plans for a potential promo if she couldn't reach Allison at all. When the reply finally came, she had just finished getting out of the shower after a workout.

Bonnie scowled immediately when she read the text. That was no victory, but she'd be wasting her time telling that to Allison.

"I'd like to speak with you and Jocelyn alone."

This time, the delay was much shorter.

So that you can dangle our jobs in front of us? What is it you think you've won in that match?

It was quite difficult not being frustrated with Allison. The Ice Queen was very good at that.

"Stop it. You're not going to be assaulting people anymore. no more backstage attacks on ANYBODY and you better behave in the ring with ur opponents. U do anymore crap and you'll be hearing from me."

Bonnie felt a little intimidated telling Allison, but this what she wanted and she wanted Allison to know.

"the same goes for joc. but as far as I know she isnt as bad as you."

Bonnie added with a second text.

This time, the replies were immediate.

What reason could I possibly have to do any of that?

You noisy little dog. The only threat you're in any position to make is that you'll continue to text me and call me and shout about me on camera, and I'm quite tired of it all.

Bonnie was gritting her teeth and hastily thumbing out a very angry response... Ultimately she deleted all that and remote her message.

"I don't believe you. You were horrible to the girls here well before we met eachother."

Bonnie wished she was intimidating, this whole conversation wasn't going the way she hoped, but at least it was alot of smoother than thought.

"I just wanted you to know all that and"

Bonnie swallowed hard, she could feel her hands shaking as she wrote out her next message.

"I want your help. i need you to help me reach out to Emily."

After writing the message, Bonnie slumped against her couch, not knowing what kind of response she'd get. Would Allison want to help Emily?

Or hurt her?

Several minutes ticked by with no response before several came pouring in at once.

You miserable fucking cunt

All of the wrong things I've done in my life have been done to me two-fold, and if you add them all up they still do not equal what you're doing now.

Do you understand?

You disgust me.

Bonnie couldn't even reply to Allison. That long period of waiting wrecked her nerves and when the messages came in Bonnie felt defeated almost instantly. She was deeply concerned with the possibility that Allison was right. Was she using people again?

It took a good ten minutes before Bonnie responded.

"You're the monster here. All you've done is torture me and my family. "

"But I know what I did to her and I just want to help her anyway I can. With or without you."

Bonnie immediately imagined herself letting Emily just have a go at her. No fighting back.

It was hard acting strong right now. Even behind a phone, she wondered if she would break in front of Allison if they were together in person. She wasn't prepared for this.

Emily Clarkson is her own woman, and neither you nor I have any say in the choices she makes.

Allison set her phone down on the small rosewood table at her right hand, next to her glass of Cabernet Sauvignon and her hardcover copy of Atlas Shrugged. The fireplace was dark, she hadn't found the motivation to build a fire lately, and her artfully arranged apartment was cast in a kaleidoscope of shadows by only two small lamps, one over her shoulder and the other across the room.

She had spent the last week mostly sitting in that chair and building a pile of finished books beside her bookcase, while letting her face heal. When she was presentable again, she would return to her business at the spa, and that was all. In the meantime, wine and books and twilight consumed her life.

She wondered if perhaps she should contact Jocelyn, but whenever she reached for the phone to do so she stopped short. Jocelyn should be the one to call her, and a part of her truly hoped that she would.

Her hand hovered near her book for a moment, but came back with her phone instead to type out another message.

Perhaps I went too far for your tastes in our match, but these years of torturous hounding and utter lunacy are entirely yours.

I only wanted to be left alone, yet I was made to defend myself on multiple occasions from your bloodthirsty gang of thugs.

I only wanted you to leave Jocelyn alone. I specifically instructed you not to pursue her, and you forced my hand.

You found my niece and ruined her. You ruined a promising, brilliant, teenage girl. You pushed her until she overcame her fears of doing the things I've done, and now look.

Look what you've done. You've beaten me only by turning my little niece into my doppelganger. You're a monster, and I hope that the world is rid of us both soon.

She put her phone down with a sharp clack and picked up her book to find her page.