Kindness (Benjamin Broadwater RP)

“How are you feeling, Benjamin.” Asked Doctor Weiss, as we find ourselves in the office of the Pursuit Of The Ring-hired doctor, on North Brother Island. Benjamin Broadwater is seen sitting across the desk from the Doctor.

“I’m feeling…hmm...I’m feeling fantastic, Doc.” Benjamin replied, a bright smile on his face.

“No lingering pain? No headaches? No soreness?” The Doctor prodded, trying to gauge any issues with Ben’s injury from being violently attacked by Omar King on the March eleventh episode of Pursuit Of The Ring. “I just want to make sure you are in tip-top shape, before we start sending you back into the field for reporting.”

“Well see, Doc, that might be an issue within itself. I’m not sure if I want to report things anymore. I’ve documented what these wrestlers - what these entertainers - had to say. I asked them questions and let them release their innermost demons. And honestly, it was appalling. The hatred that fell off their tongue…the vile they spewed forth from their mouth. It was sickening!”

“Some people see this sport as a way to release their frustration, their anger, and all of their insecurities. Others need that rush to feel like they are alive. Then you have some who could care less about those things and just want the fame and fortune that come with the higher-level federations and leagues. And for those who want that and can’t reach it, it becomes a vicious cycle as that anger and frustration of not living up to what they feel they deserve starts to show. Eventually they pop and those feelings become violent tendencies. This leads to other legal issues outside of the ring, or a destructive mentality like Mr. King has.” Doctor Weiss paused for a moment. “And you know exactly what it’s like to be on the receiving end of that mentality.”

“Well, that’s one of the things that Doctor Nelson and I have been discussing…all this pent up aggression these individuals are harboring…” Ben started to add to the conversation, but Doctor Weiss held up his hand to stop him.

“Who is Doctor Nelson?”

“He is my personal therapist. After what happened between myself and The King, I had a little bit of ptsd and decided I wanted to get some outside help to-uh…” Ben taps his right temple with his right hand’s index finger “...to clear out the cobwebs. After all, I want to be able to go back to functioning correctly in society, right? I can’t be jumpy and scared of someone looking in my direction for the rest of my life, now can I?”

“Have you discussed these outside therapy sessions with Mr. DeMarco? I know he was trying to schedule you for some other appointments, just to make sure you were in tip-top shape.” The Doctor continued to pry, causing Ben to let out a sigh as his shoulders slightly slump down.

“Not yet. Doctor Nelson said that his ways are a little unconventional and not everyone would agree with them.” Benjamin replied softly.

“Maybe you should tell him then. I think he has a right to know. After all…” Dr. Weiss looks through some paperwork on his desk. “...it says you have signed on to be an active participant in some matches on the Fallout brand?”

“Oh, yes.” Benjamin’s face suddenly lit up. “Dr. Nelson suggested to me that maybe I could wade through my trauma by putting myself in danger’s way. You know…sort of a system shock to get everything back to being normal.”

“I’m not sure if that’s a good id-” Dr. Weiss started to reply before Benjamin cut him off as if he didn’t even say anything.

“And honestly I agree. It would be nice to show these people that they don’t have to be so full of fire and brimstone…that they can accomplish things through peace and kindness. Yeah, sometimes punches might have to be thrown, but they can talk to each other like normal human beings.”

“Still don’t like it. But I’m only here to gauge your PHYSICAL well-being…not your mental well-being.”

“So do I pass the test then, Doc?”

“Physically, yes. But I will be suggesting to Mr. DeMarco, that you have a psych evaluation done. Plus I want him to look into this Dr. Nelson individual.” Dr. Weiss stated while still looking through the paperwork. Ben shook his head in disbelief.

“Dr. Nelson is a good man, I believe in him. I will NOT have you besmirch his name. What is with you people? Once you are challenged or opposed, the first thing you want to do is speak hate? You want to put each other down instead of building each other up! What would a world of everyone saying GOOD things about each other bring? More positivity! Less depression! Less anxiety! More love!” Benjamin stands from his chair, a little flustered. “I’ll take your word that I am physically okay, Dr. Weiss. But I will not sit here and let you challenge the ideas of a man who has already helped me get through so much mental angst. So I will take my leave and catch my boat off this island. You have a good day, sir.”

“But Benj-”

“I SAID GOOD DAY!” Benjamin turns in a huff, grabbing his light jacket off the back of the chair and exits the room…shutting the door calmly as he leaves. A few seconds pass by before Dr. Weiss grabs his cell phone off the right side of his desk and presses a button.

“Call Christian DeMarco.” Dr. Weiss says as his phone begins to ring while on speakerphone.

“Hello?” Christian DeMarco’s voice questions from over the speaker.

“Listen, Mr. DeMarco…we have some things to discuss about Benjamin Broadwater.” Dr. Weiss starts as we slowly fade out.

---

After catching a chartered boat back to the mainland, Benjamin Broadwater slowly walked up the path to the parking lot of the World’s Fair Marina. Sitting in the parking lot, was a small limousine with a man in black standing outside of a rear door Seeing the man holding a sign that read ‘Broadwater’, Benjamin quickly walked over to him.

“I’m Benjamin Broadwater. Is this for me?” The former Pursuit Of The Ring Interviewer asked. Without an answer the man in black lowered his sign, grabbed the handle of the rear passenger door, and opened it. With barely a motion to enter the vehicle, Ben happily climbed in.

”I’m glad you could make it.” A deep, gravelly voice called out from the other end of the inside of the limo. Benjamin looked up as the door to the limo shut, but it seemed there was an electrical issue with the lights on that side of the back as they were all out. All he could see were a pair of brown leather shoes.

“Dr. Nelson? Is that you hiding in the darkness over there?”

“Who else would come to pick up such a good friend such as yourself?”

“You’re too good to me, Doc.” Ben smirked as he started looking around the back of the limo. “Snazzy little ride you got here”

“Only the best for you, Benjamin. So tell me…how did your appointment with Dr. Weiss go? Are you physically cleared?”

Benjamin’s whole demeanor of being happy to be in the limo with Dr. Nelson changed as his shoulders drooped a bit and the energy in his voice dipped down.

“Yeah, I’m cleared physically. But that good-for-nothing Doc wants to talk to DeMarco about getting me a mental evaluation and possibly look into you.”

“Into me? Did you tell that Doctor to stay in his lane and mind his own business?”

“No, sir. That would be rude. I told him I wouldn’t sit around while he was making a mockery of your name and I left.”

“Wonderful, my friend. It seems our sessions have been working then. Instead of jumping to the distasteful ways these people think and speak…you chose to be the bigger man. You chose to be the righteous man.” Dr. Nelson beamed. “I have a few calls to make, but I’m sure I can get you a match for this next cycle. Would you like that?”

“And test the waters with these fabulous open wings you gave me? I would like nothing more, Doc.”

“Excellent! We can spread the word of love, peace, and kindness…and maybe garner a few extra faces into our belief along the way.”

---

Opening up, we find ourselves in the beautiful twenty-four-acre Berkshire Botanical Gardens. Centered in the middle of the screen is a grassy area, surrounded by flowers and shaped bushes. In the center of the grassy area, is Benjamin Broadwater. Sitting with his legs crossed in Sukhasana, or ‘Easy Pose’. His eyes are shut and his hands are gently placed on his knees.

Deep breath in.

Deep breath out.

“The smell of nature is so intoxicating, while the sounds of it are so calming. Like two different emotions, clashing inside your mind.” Benjamin begins, his eyes still closed. “That’s how I feel today as I look forward to my first match inside of Project: Honor. My emotions…jumbled…calm yet unable to stop the roller coaster they are riding.”

His eyes slowly open, letting their piercing blue color fully expose themselves.

“My emotions…wanting to crawl out of my skin, yet easy and comfortable where they are. And I’m sure my first opponent knows that very same feeling. Am I right, Stella?”

A small smirk appears in the corner of his mouth.

“I’ve seen the way you look when you got into that ring with Brandon Hendrix at the last Proving Ground. The awe, the shock,...the love. The ideas running through your head of what next to write, what next storyline to fill in, what next situation to put your characters in.” Ben winks at the camera. “I’ve seen some of the pre-Project: Honor fan-fic that has been leaked. I WAS a reporter after all, I had my sources. But Stella, darling, it was stupendous.”

Another deep breath.

“What? Did you expect me to tear it down? Did you expect me to tell you it was trash and spit on it? That’s not my style, Ms. Jade. That’s not how I think things should be done. You see, talent like yours…should be lifted up. It should be held up high for the world to see. It should be honored. And like a big ol’ batch of karma, that will come right back around to you…right?” The smirk becomes a smile. “Give the universe some positivity and the universe will give you positivity right back!”

Benjamin closes his eyes again as he continues his pose.

“Stella, my friend, you are the first in line for me to try to change our entire industry. You are my very own first test. I came into our business as the interviewer-the reporter, bent on exposing the truth and getting dirty laundry out for the world to see. I brought negativity and with the help of Omar King, the universe gave me negativity. So now…why don’t we lift each other up? Why don’t we tell each other what we excel at instead of trying to bring each other down with talk of darker times?” A nice deep breath. “Like Stella, you came into Project: Honor like a rocket. You and your team of Betsy, Gio, and Sonya shined brightly in your Unbreakable Resolution win over The OGs. Then a couple months later, you dazzled us all with a display of wrestling that would make the Billy Bennetts and Elena DeDracas of the world be in awe. The way you, Lexi, DIANA, and Betsy handled the DaVengers was nothing short of perfection. As for all the stuff in between those two times and even between that Proving Ground and now…useless talk.”

Benjamin opens his eyes, his smile gone.

“Why talk about times when you could have been depressed? Why talk about times when you could have been injured? No one wants to hear that. No one is impressed by someone’s knowledge of mud-slinging and malicious banter. If we want to be our best, we have to take on the best…and by making your opponents self-doubt themselves, you get less of an opponent…am I right?” Ben tips his head slightly to the side, maybe by two degrees, then smiles. “Who is that helping? It’s not helping Project: Honor, merely brings down their viewers when they are tired of hearing that dribble and watching lack-luster performances. It’s not helping the person talking smack, as they get a self-defeating opponent who may bolster their own self-confidence by defeating the aforementioned self-doubter…but quickly kills their mood when that win leads to bigger fish and that bigger fish beats the absolute dog-poo out of them. AND…it doesn’t help the opponent who had their name slandered and torn into, leading them into weeks of depression, constant shows of loss as that negativity inches into their brain, and possibly months to get themselves back on track. And if they don’t get back on track? That could lead to worse options that we just don’t want to talk about right now.”

A pause to let the heaviness of what was just said, calmly slip away.

“So that’s why I am here to only talk about the good things, Stella. Your wondrous heart, your beautiful soul, your talented mind, and the oodles of talent you have seeping out into that Project: Honor ring. It’s all amazing, as you are an amazing young lass. I am happy to see that you are my first opponent and I can’t wait to see what happens. But let it be known, I am content with ANY outcome. For it is simply an honor to stand across the ring from you.”

Benjamin takes in another deep breath, taking in the aroma of the garden. His eyes slowly shut.

“Have a blessed time, Stella. You are going to do great. I’m rooting for you.”