Blake Mason vs. Cookie Dreams

[BME]

Author's Note: 1 of 2.

CD Only

July 1st, 2020

Ottawa, Ontario

Blake Mason wasn’t alone in his hotel room, Jaxson Sullivan sat on the bed scrolling through his phone. The big man wasn’t there to protect Blake from any imminent danger. The Bostonian has been shelled up in his room from the moment he arrived in Ottawa a day ago. While Jaxson was looking at whatever he was looking at, Blake was standing. Sitting down wasn’t going to accomplish much with the anxious mood he was already in, so he opted to shadow box. 


Every jab. Every right hook. Every uppercut thrown he was imagining beating the living hell out of Giovani Aires. He couldn’t allow him to get away with smashing a picture frame over the love of his life’s head. 


The story of Blake’s life. All roads lead to Kelcey. Over the past couple of weeks, Blake knew full well what he was doing. Defending Kelcey at every turn. Giving her a burner phone with the intent of no one being able to trace their correspondence with each other, being in each other’s company on Father’s Day. He wasn’t naive. All roads were destined to lead to the implosion of him and Taylor’s engagement, just a matter of who was going to end it. Five days ago he didn’t need to worry about directly doing it himself, his actions led to Taylor being fed up with how he was acting, willingly showing signs of where his heart belonged. 


One would assume Blake would be relieved Taylor performed a mercy kill on their relationship. That wasn’t to be. Blake spent most of the weekend in isolation. Spending the weekend in a hotel felt like the best course of action. Knowing he had a fight with Giovanni on the horizon made life a lot easier. A task to focus on. A distraction to steal his mind away. 


He told Kelcey. Not to tell her “come home to me.” He just needed someone to talk to. She promised him they would talk more about the end of his relationship with Taylor when they arrived in Ottawa. She knew what hotel and room he is staying in.  


A knock on the door broke Blake’s concentration. 


Jaxson stands up to get the door. 


Blake waves him off. Soon as Blake reaches the door he opens it. Standing in the hallway is Kelcey Wallace. Seeing Kelcey always brought a smile to his face. Always representing the light to his shrouded darkness. With a smile he greets her with, “Thanks for coming.”


She immediately hugs him.


He wraps his arms around her waist, pulling her closer. 


Knowing this couldn’t last forever, as much as he wanted their embrace too, he lets her go.


Kelcey walks into the room. 


Blake shuts the door. 


“Would you like anything?” Blake cordially asks. 


Kelcey turns around. She shakes her head. “No thanks.”


Jaxson Sullivan stands up. He greets Kelcey by nodding his head. He walks over to Blake. Patting his employer on his right shoulder, Jaxson silently walks past Blake, opens the door and exits the room, closing the door behind him. 


With Blake and Kelcey officially alone, she takes a seat on his bed. 


Blake opts to remain standing. 


“How are you holding up?” Kelcey asks. 


“Can’t think about any of that right now, Kelcey. Giovanni is the only task on my mind. We can discuss me being an absolute failure at relationships later.” Blake says with a cheeky smile.


Kelcey shakes her head. “Please don’t do that, love. You promised we would talk about this.”


“And we will, Kelcey. Now is not a good time. I need to focus one hundred percent on Giovani. Who knows what scheme he has in mind. On the bright side, if he does suck me into his abyss, I doubt Taylor will give a crap. ” 


“That’s not true. She may be upset right now. Taylor loves you. Give her time. You can fix this.”


“What if I don’t want to?” Blake sternly says. 


“You don’t mean that.” 


“What’s the point Kelcey? Gio is a madman. Most of what he says is completely unfounded. But there is one thing he said to me that actually made sense. I am always crossing a line to walk it back later. This is one line I am done apologizing for. I am tired of always saying I am sorry for the love I have for you.” Blake states with certainty. “Bree couldn’t accept it. Thought Taylor would be different. Guess not. My feelings for you will never go away. If no one can accept that, I’d rather be alone than deny what I feel when we share the same room.” 



“Blake--” Kelcey said, searching for the words to say. 


“Was I too strong?” Blake asks. 



“No. You were being you.” Kelcey says. 



“Good or bad thing?” Blake says. 



“Right now? Both. Why are you so maddening?” Kelcey says shaking her head. 



“Brings all the girls to the yard and chases them away. Catch 22.” Blake shrugs.Tired of standing, Blake walks over to join Kelcey. He takes a seat on the bed next to her, placing his hand on her knee; he continues “Taylor will be fine, she’s better off without me. She deserves a guy who is one hundred percent committed. I wanted that guy to be me. Life doesn’t always work out the way you want. But it does for you.”


Kelcey raises her eyebrow. “What do you mean?”


“I already know.” 


“I don’t follow.” Kelcey says unaware of what Blake is talking about. 


“Remember when I was using my connection with the Board of Directors to facilitate my career advancement a couple years ago?”


Kelcey nods. 


Blake continues. “Between us, I have a source or two still on the board. Since returning to the company I haven’t gone out of my way to use those relationships. Someone, not at liberty to say who, passed along some information I would be interested in. A little birdie told me Mr. D signed off on you making a return to the ring? Is this true?” 


“Yes.” Kelcey doesn’t hesitate admitting.  


Blake continues. “Wish you didn’t, Kels.”  


“Love, I can handle myself.”



“It’s not that.” Blake smiles. “I get it. Professional wrestling was taken away from you. Fate dealt you a horrible hand. If I was in your position I would do everything in my power to return back to the ring. I will always view the classic we had at the End of the Year Special as... perfect. After all the chaos I brought into your life; being your last match meant... still means the world to me.”


Blake takes a deep breath. “Our match was a representation of us closing that nasty chapter in our lives. You forgave me for all the sins I committed. Felt poetic. Part of me always felt I had to continue to make you proud. To honor what we shared that night. I haven’t always been a paragon of virtue. I never will be. Knowing you are able to return to the ring; I’m happy. But I... being your last was an honor, ya know.”


“That’s sweet of you to say.” Kelcey leans in, kissing him on the cheek. “You know I need to do this. Giovanni can’t get away with what he has done.” 


“This is all part of his game, Kelcey. Attacking Mr. D was designed to get under your skin. Going after Owen is a ploy to draw you out.”


“Let him. I am not backing down.” Kelcey says adamantly. 


“Giving a madman what he wants won’t solve anything.” Blake sternly replies. “Can’t let a man like him pull your strings.”


“We can’t allow filth like him to run rampant. I need to be on the frontline. Wrestling deserves better than letting men like Giovani win.”


“Promise you won’t get in the ring tonight.”


“Blake--”


Blake grabs Kelcey’s hand. “Promise me.”


“Alright.” Kelcey says resigning to Blake’s request.   


“Thank you.” Blake kisses Kelcey on the forehead. “One thing at a time. Lets get through tonight first. Whatever the future holds, we’ll tackle then. Deal?”


Kelcey leans her head into Blake’s chest. “Sounds perfect.”


Blake wraps his arm around Kelcey. They sit there in silence for a while... 


~~


Breakdown was a whirlwind. Chris Cannon opted to thwart Blake’s attempt to take a stab at Giovanni. This led to a brawl that didn’t escalate too much. Sienna took advantage of the situation, shoving Jordan Majors off the stage. Blake wound up eventually fighting Gio later in the night. Blake got himself disqualified. He watched on as Gio taunted Kelcey and Owen with an offer, only one of them could face him at Rise to Greatness. Attempting to pit them against each other. Kelcey said Owen would be the one to take on the leader of The Wonderland, she had every intention of being there in his corner. Blake was relieved. Kelcey didn’t have a physical altercation with the man. Crisis averted. For now. He knew the day was imminent. Nothing he can do to stop the inevitable. 


~~

July 2nd, 2020

Boston, Ma

Mason Estate

By the afternoon the following day Blake was in Boston. The convenient thing about Breakdown being in Ottawa was the plane ride to Boston would not take long.  


A driver was waiting at the airport the minute Blake and Jaxson touched down. 


Half an hour later, the driver pulled up at the very large mansion Blake grew up in. 


Opening the backdoor on the passenger side, Blake stepped foot on the hallowed grounds. Jaxson exited on the drivers side. The big man walks around the car to join the man he is charged to protect. 


Blake proudly looks up at Jaxson. “What do you think?”


Not looking at Blake, Jaxson keeps his eyes fixated on the mansion. “Looks like if I’m not careful; I might not be able to find my way out.”


Blake smirks. “It’s not that bad.”  


Jaxson turns around. Before he can advance to the trunk of the car Blake grabs his wrist. “Don’t worry about it, someone will get our bags. You're my guest, enjoy the splendor.”


“Fair enough.” Jaxson nonchalantly says. 


Blake walks up to the large double doors. He could easily pull out his keys to let himself in. Since no one knew he was showing up, it felt right in his mind to ring the doorbell.  


A minute passes, no one answers. 


Blake pushes the doorbell again. 


No one answers. 


He reaches for the doorbell one more time. 


He is seconds away from pushing it before the door finally opens. 


Blake is utterly confused looking at the person who opened the door. 


The person isn’t his mother or any of the hired help his mom still has on staff. The white male who is about two inches taller than him, sporting a goatee, is a figure he is all too familiar with. Never imagined this man stepping foot in the home he grew up in. 


Someone had to break the awkward silence. Blake chose to be the one to do it. “Braedon...”



Braedon offers his hand to Blake. “Hey... Elaine didn’t tell me you were stopping by.”



Blake’s left eyebrow perks up. “This is MY home, says so on the deed.  I don’t need to call in advance to stop by. The way I see it Braedon, you are trespassing.”



“Look Blake, I don’t want any trouble.” Braedon says in an attempt to diffuse the situation. 


Blake turns to Jaxson. “Would you mind throwing him out please?”


Jaxson shakes his head. 


Blake sighs. “Why not?”


“Off the clock remember.” Jaxson pats Blake on the shoulder. 


“Fine!” Blake rolls his eyes. He turns his attention back to Braedon. “Where was I? Yes. Get out of my house.”


“You should take that up with, Elaine.” Braedon says standing his ground. “Your mom invited me.”



“Braedon...” Blake grits his teeth.  “I have had a very hard week, I don’t need any further aggravation. This can go one of two ways, I can call the cops. They can escort you off MY property or I can physically remove you myself. This doesn’t need to be difficult. You tried putting my father out of business for years, if you think I am going to overlook that, you are sadly mistaken. You don’t belong here. So what is it going to be?”



Before the situation can escalate further, Blake sees Drake over Braedon’s shoulder. His brother steps between him and the man he deems an intruder. 


Blake narrows his eyes. “Good. Drake. Can you help escort this man off my property?!”


“Brother... What brings you here?” Drake says, shocked to see Blake in town. 



“Do I need an invitation to come home?” Blake shouts back. 



“Perhaps if you called; we could have avoided this awkward situation.” Drake says plainly. 



“There is nothing awkward about this!” Blake nothing bothers to hold back his agitation. He takes a deep breath.  “You don’t know the pain that man--”  Blake points to Braedon “-- has caused to our family.”


“More than you know.” Drake looks off to the side. He turns around. Looking at Braedon, Drake says. “I’ll explain everything.” 


Braedon took the opportunity to eject himself from a chaotic confrontation. 



Drake turns back to face Blake. Blake folds his arms into his chest. 


Drake takes a deep breath. “There is no colorful way to sugar coat this. The man our mother invited in our home is the one she had an affair out of wedlock with. That makes Braedon Manning my father.    


Blake turned his back to Drake. For him time literally stopped. He could not believe what he was hearing. Braedon Manning is the father of Drake? Their mom slept with that guy? Why was he just now learning about this? Why was this secret kept from him? Obviously he knew his mom had an affair that led him to having a half brother. Up until today he didn’t care to know who the actual father was. All he knew was Drake was put up for adoption.



“I don’t need this right now--.” Blake screamed out. He felt Drake put his hand on his shoulder. The former two time tag team champion jerked his shoulder away. “Don’t fucking touch me!” 



“If it makes you feel better, I am as uncomfortable with this as you are.” Drake says in an attempt to gain some ground with his brother. 


Blake turns around. “All the more reason to kick him to the curb!!”


“Our mom is happy, all that matters.”


“I came here to take a break from my chaotic life. Not walk into more chaos. Where is mom?! She needs to see this my way.” Blake demands. 


“In the study.” Drake calmly replied.


Blake  storms inside the house. 


Once inside, he takes a hard left.  


Reaching the study, he doesn’t need to open the door, it happens to be open. He walks in on Elaine and Braedon having a conversation between themselves. 



Elaine turns her attention to her son. With a smile on her face she says. “Hello son.”



Blake places his hands on his hips. “Please tell me this is one big joke!” 



Elaine turns to Braedon. “Can you excuse us?”


Braedon nods. “Sure.”


Braedon walks past Blake. 


To his credit, Blake pays Braedon no mind as he walks by. 


His attention is focused squarely on his mom. Elaine points to the chair. “Have a seat.”



Blake shakes his head. “I prefer to stand.” 



“I know this must come as a shock, but I can explain.” Elaine softly says. 



“No explanation in the world is going to justify you--” Blake takes a deep breath to calm himself down. “He tried to put my father out of business, or have you forgotten!”



Elaine shakes her head. “No. I haven’t. There is a reason for that.” Elaine points to the chair once again. “Please, sit down?”



Blake sighs. He takes a seat. 



Elaine continues. “I appreciate everything your father did for me. He was a strong, passionate, driven man. The fortune he amassed for all of us he believed was how you show true love. I have no doubt he loved me. I needed much more than that. I needed... him. Your father had a hard time opening himself up to all of us--” Elaine trails off. “What your father couldn’t give me in attention and appreciation, Braedon was more than willing. I fell in love with him. Hard. After you were born I knew I had to make a choice. A life with your father or Braedon. We know what choice I made. I hated having to break Braedon’s heart. He was a nice, sweet, gentle man. I--”


Knowing exactly where this was going, Blake finished his mother’s sentence. “Turned him into a monster?”  


“Yes.” Elaine nods. She places her hand on her heart. “I take full responsibility for Braedon lashing out. He knows how wrong he was.  How can I hate him when I am the one who gave him unnecessary pain? I wasn’t expecting to have him in my life again. Drake wanted to know who his father was. It was a tough conversation to have. I finally admitted I robbed him of a chance to be a dad to Drake. Telling him the truth was hard, it managed to bring us closer together. Now we have a second chance.”



Blake took a moment  to process the heavy information his mother dropped on him. 


The affair aside, he saw his mother as a paragon of virtue. He could lean on her to  judge what true morality was like. To find out she carried more secrets than he knew about, was a lot to process. And a reminder no matter where he goes, chaos will follow.  


Collecting his thoughts, Blake finally says. “Good thing Kayla is with her Kate. This would have been a lot to explain. Why didn’t you tell me sooner?” Blake says.  



Elaine walks over to where Blake is sitting. She places her hand on his shoulder. “Never the right time. You have enough on your plate right now.” 



“More than you know.” Blake rises to his feet. He lowers his head, unable to look at his mom. He manages to say,  “Taylor left me, mom.”



“Oh my god!” Elaine wraps her arms around her son. “I am so sorry.” 


Finally Blake broke down. No more shield. No distractions.  Hugging his mom, he manages to say through the tears... “Me too, mom. Me too.”