Lauren vs. Yukino: Apex Qualifier

[CaptainL]

"One! Two!"

With every time the referee's hand fell against the canvas, Yukino could feel her heart racing faster and faster. She could hardly believe it, but she was actually doing this! Lauren was down, and she was the one doing the deed! For a moment, it didn't matter that Lauren was on a losing streak or that no one had much faith in her because of it. This meant that Yukino was standing up against a woman who was both larger than her and more experienced than her, and she was actually succeeding! If she could do this, she was sure, she could do anything!

Yukino glanced back and forth, taking in the cheers of the crowd urging her to fight on. She looked back at Nashi, wanting her best friend to share in her success. If this was going to be a big moment for her, she wanted to be sure Nashi was seeing every bit of it. But right then was when Lauren kicked out! Yukino was thrown back, letting out a gasp as her position gave way and she dropped to her back. She was still a bit shaken from the landing, and from all she'd been through in this match - but this time, she fixed a glare on Lauren as she rolled back up to all fours, and then got to her feet, dusting herself off. She had nearly beaten Lauren before - she could do it again!

"Well, I'm ready for you!" she shouted back, clenching her fists and falling into a stance.

[Highfly]

Yukino looked ready to go, so Lauren moved in and tried to grapple with her! Lauren wanted to grab hold of Yukino so she was close before reading her knee up to smash Yukino a few times in the abdomen with hard knee strikes. Lauren wasn't stopping there either, if she could soften Yukino up enough she would try to lift her up and step forward to send Yukino down across her knee for a back breaker!

[CaptainL]

Ordinarily, seeing an opponent like Lauren bearing down on her - an opponent who was larger, stronger, and more experienced - would have struck some fear into Yukino. No matter what Lauren's track record up to this point might have been, Yukino still felt like she was only just barely coming into her own as a wrestler, and she wasn't confident she would be able to keep up. But now, she knew things were turning around. She had the pressure locked down on Lauren, she had nearly taken her down for the pin, and now, she was convinced that the will and the potential was in her to beat her! She looked up to lock eyes with the heavyweight, and a grin flashed across her face. She was sure she could do this!

Yukino prepared to push her way forward, attempting to steer her opponent back. But almost as soon as their hands touched, Lauren was ready to strike - and she caught the white-haired girl completely off-guard! She reeled her in, and Yukino barely had any time to gasp before Lauren rammed her knee up into her stomach again and again. Each time, her blow landed with the sound of a thwack, causing Yukino to double over and her hips and back to buck up into the air. She sputtered and coughed as the air was driven out of her lungs, leaving her stunned. And the worst was yet to come - as Lauren scooped Yukino up into the air, just before slamming her down onto her knee!

As her back sunk against Lauren's leg, Yukino threw back her head, letting out a scream of agony. Her whole back felt like it was erupting in pain, tears were welling up in her eyes, and she began to sink against Lauren's knee with a moan. With her whole body feeling sore, she could barely even bring herself to move her limbs; she shuddered whenever she tried. Yukino really didn't want this to take her out, but now, she feared she didn't have much choice...

[Highfly]

Lauren shoved Yukino off her knee onto the mat and slashed down across her chest to pin Yukino! Instead of hooking a leg Lauren flexed a bicep and posed earning booing from the crowd. "That is some real power! Learn to appreciate it people!" Lauren shouted to the disapproving crowd. The official slid in to place to begin the pin count as Lauren had Yukino covered.

"ONE!"

[CaptainL]

The moment Yukino had come crashing down onto Lauren's knee, everything seemed to break. Her whole body was erupting in pain, too sore for her to bring herself to move - and every time she tried, even just to twist her hips one way or another, she felt the pain flare up in her again, causing her to let out a whine as she sank back against the mat. She stared up at the ceiling, panting a few times. All she could feel was a cold sweat running down the back of her neck. She didn't want to believe it, but she knew all too well of the impending truth. She was down, helpless, and hurting - and Lauren was moving into place for the pin!

"TWO!!"

Yukino winced just thinking about it. There was no way, she knew, that she would be able to get away when even the thought of moving left her sore. All she could do was wait. But was this how it had to end? With her losing to Lauren, of all people? Squeezing her eyes shut and clenching her teeth in a grimace, Yukino tried to turn her eyes away from what was happening to her. It was the only way she could bear it.

[Highfly]

"THREE!"

The bell rang and Lauren stood tall, holding her arms out before strutting around the ring as she had managed to win! The crowd booed her victory and she shook her head at them. "I fought clean, and I won! Why can't you just cheer the better wrestler on this night? Oh that's right, I am not thin enough or pretty enough for ya!" Lauren shouted to the crowd as she leaned over the ropes having an exchange with the fans.

[SRG]

Nashi saw Yukino fight her heart out with everything she can muster. While Nashi was happy Yukino wanted to be her own star she felt she was responsible for what happened next. Hearing the 3 count made Nashi rush into the ring and kneel down to Yukino’s level and say”YUKINO! I’m sorry I threw you off you’re a game and you lost because of me!” Nashi began to have tears drop from her eyes looking at Yukino before asking”are you ever able to forgive me?” She asked in nervous tone of voice hoping Yukino won’t be mad at her.

[CaptainL]

With that, the match was over. The referee counted three, and the bell rang. Yukino was left in the middle of the ring, where she let out a sigh as she sat back up - she'd found the strength in her to rise from the canvas, but it was too late. Her head bowed low to the ground, and she sniffled just a little to herself. Her worst fears had come true - no matter how hard she had tried, she'd still lost to Lauren.

But just then, Yukino heard Nashi's voice. Lost in her own thoughts, she hadn't realized that her partner had entered the ring, up until she was right in her face. "H-Huh..?" Yukino looked back up at her - and when her eyes settled on Nashi's own, she froze, her eyes wide in shock. She could see the tears running down Nashi's face as she pleaded desperately for forgiveness, and it was then that Yukino realized that there was a fear in her that was even greater than losing to Lauren - letting Nashi down. Losing to a glorified jobber was bad enough. But if she made her best friend feel like a bad person because she wasn't good enough, that was a failure Yukino couldn't tolerate.

"N-Nashi..! Hey, hey...it's fine..." She looked back up at Nashi, sniffling as she reached out to place her hands on her shoulders. A tear trickled off her cheek and landed on the mat, but she bit her lip to try and stop any more from coming. "I'm not mad at you, I promise..!"

[SRG]

Nashi could see that his lost hurt Yukino has much as it hurt her. When Yukino told her it’s okay Nashi heard something she wasn’t excepting. The crowd was booing at Lauren wanting Yukino to win instead. Nashi turned to Yukino with a smile”you hear that?the crowd loves you more then Lauren so even if you lost the match you won the crowd” She smirked before helping Yukino get up”wanna leave blonde here to fight the crowd?” she chucked before holding the ropes pen for her Yukino and soon follow her out.

[CaptainL]

Yukino tried her best to smile to Nashi. She knew her friend was already grappling with grief over the loss, and for blaming herself in distracting Yukino, and she didn't want to make her feel any worse. But it was a struggle. She had to squeeze her fists tight enough to dig her nails into the palms of her hand, stifling the tears in her eyes. Yukino was disappointed too - she knew she had come this far, to Apex, with a desire to prove herself, yet even when she was up against a woman who by all means shouldn't have posed a threat, she had lost. What did that say about her chances? "I'm...I'm fine. Really, I'm fine," she repeated to herself, more out of a desire to convince herself than anything else.

But she wasn't fooling anyone. Nashi could see through it - but then, she wanted now to be the one to cheer Yukino up instead. When Yukino looked back up at her, she stopped...and when she listened to what she had to say, she blinked the tears out of her eyes, letting a smile cross her face. The more she thought on it, the more Yukino knew it was true. Listening to the noise in the arena told her as much. She might have lost, but everyone was booing. Everyone wanted to see her emerge the victor. If everyone wanted to see her win, that meant she had proven herself capable enough to captivate the hearts and minds of everyone in the crowd. That was what she'd set out to do in the first place - and she had succeeded.

Taking Nashi by the hand, Yukino pulled herself back to her feet and nodded her head. Now, she could smile. She might have lost this match, but she was ready to move on to whatever new challenges lay ahead! "All right, Nashi," she said, turning to leave the ring, "let's see what's next for us!"

Winner by Pinfall: Lauren Fredericks