Smashed
Sienna Lucia
Arielle was a prodigy pianist, but she gave it up to become a wrestler. When she was 11 years old, she smashed every bone in her left hand.
Her parents were upset, not that she could no longer play the piano, but that she smashed every bone in her hand. She said she would be stuck doing this forever, and she hated the sound of the piano. She was too good at it.
She took her dads hammer out of his tool box and went down to the lake a couple blocks away from her. She laid her hand on a flat rock, wound up, and took a big swing. She couldn’t continue after one hit. she dropped the hammer, picked up her flip phone and speed dialed her best friend.
“I couldn't do it,” she cried, “you have to do the rest for me.”
Her friend tried to convince her this wasn't the right way around this. She had to just say she didn't want to play the piano anymore. But Arielle said that wasn't good enough, she had to prove it, and she wanted to be a fighter, she wanted to prove she was strong enough.
Her friend refused to smash her hand with a hammer, so Arielle ended up finishing the job in retaliation. Aer friend called an ambulance, her parents asked, “Why the hell would you do that?”
“I want to be a wrestler and never play music again.”
Her father thought for a while, “Well an injury like this isn’t going to help you. But if you’re serious, then I will help you.”
Years later, she was mildly successful. She went to training gyms, she created her character, and started fighting locally. She was decent, usually placed in a role as the villian, which she didn’t really like. She liked winning, and people rooting for her, not against her.
She was on tour with a group of other female wrestlers in a motel in cleveland. Her rival, and everyone’s favorite, Victoria Valentine told her, “You just don’t have main character energy, not everyone does. it’s ok, everyone likes a villian." Everyone loves to hate and boo a villian, she thought.
It annoyed Arielle that people said wrestling is fake. It's as real as anything. It's a play where everyone does their own stunts. But no one is ever remembered for staying on script. Improvisation is what’s memorable.
It was her against Victoria that night. Victoria was very sweet and from Tennessee. She was just trying to make Arielle feel better. In the locker room that night she said, addressing no one in particular,
“I think I want to get into acting.”
“That could be a good move for you,” one of the other wrestlers said.
“Right? I mean I love this, but having cameos in things, it's worked for so many others. And you can’t keep fighting forever. I want to get to championships first obviously, but it could be a cool side gig, right?”
That's it, I'm going Tonya Harding on her ass, she thought.
In the ring that night, the crowd jestingly booed as Arielle entered. She stepped up to the mic and decided to go off script.
“You people love to hate me, don’t you?” she said as the crowd cheered in response, “I gave up everything for this! I’m stronger, I’m more talented, I’m a fucking winner!” She paused for more cheers, “You all love Victoria, don’t you? Well tonight I’m putting her in the ground!”
She walked back to her corner, and as the match was starting, Victoria said softly, “Wow, that was amazing, you came up with that?” And Arielle swung at her face.
“Wait! That’s not supposed to happen yet!” she yelled, but Arielle kept swinging. She showed no mercy, and allowed no time for Victoria to hit back, who was stunned at what seemed like genuine malice. Arielle was slamming Victoria’s head against the floor when the ref pulled them apart. The crowd absolutely loved it.
“What the hell was that?” Arielle’s coach said, exasperated in the locker room. Arielle had nothing to say, “You’re gonna do what I tell you next time.
Victoria’s coach came over to them, “She’s okay,” she said, “actually, the crowd loved the turn of events. They felt like it was really real, you know? We’re gonna have to have a change of plans for the rest of the season.”
Arielle was intrigued, her coach responded, “So what does this mean? She gets to win?”
“For a few matches, sure, but we don’t know if a villain should win it all yet. But it adds some more tension I think, don’t you think? Anyway, it’s not up to me, but it looks like something is definitely gonna change, they absolutely love it out there,” She grinned ear to ear.
Of course they do, Arielle thought, of course.
Sienna Lucia is a writer and photographer in Queens, NY. She is the editor of Moral Crema Magazine and has written work in Boston Hassle, The Drunken Canal, and Maudlin House.