A Meetup at the Gym (for ClockwerkSamurai12)

[CaptainL]

Those first few seconds hurt the worst. Lacey felt like she had practically been broken in half, and her whole body had given out on her. Slowly she was starting to come to her senses, catching her breath and shaking the cobwebs out of her head, and with it, the pain in her spine had dulled down into an ache she could almost tolerate. But even as her pants slowed to a calm breath, Lacey still couldn't help but blame herself for what had happened. This had taught her just as much as everything else her career in LAW thus far had - she just wasn't enough, and she didn't have it in her to measure up to the competition. How could she have faith in herself when all evidence pointed to the contrary?

Taking in a deep sigh, she picked herself up onto her knees, her head hanging low and staring at the mats beneath her. "I'm...sorry," she said, letting out a deep sigh that caused her shoulders to sink low. She didn't even turn her head to look back at Arizona - in her mind, that would mean confronting the reality of what she'd done, and that would mean owing up to her own failures. Even in trying to improve her skills, she'd just ended up hurting herself - what did that say?

"I just...want to get better. And how can I get better if I can't take a hold?" Even saying it made her wince. The thought of her own hopelessness hurt just as much as the hold itself. "I don't want everyone to think I'm a letdown..."

[ClockwerkSamurai12]

Arizona: Aw c’mon kid, don’t beat yerself up like that!

[CaptainL]

"Huh..?" When Lacey heard what Arizona had to say, it was enough to make her pause, if only for a moment. She sat up a little straighter, sniffling to herself and wiping some tears out of her eyes. She looked back over her shoulder at Arizona, just enough to make eye contact, but a moment later, she let out a sigh that caused her shoulders to slump and her body to deflate. Arizona cared about her, sure. Lacey was grateful to know that she wanted to give her the encouragment to succeed...and yet, the green-haired girl just couldn't shake the feeling that her care was being wasted on her. If she couldn't even escape from a hold like this if she tried, wasn't Arizona just wasting her time with her? Her encouragment was bittersweet - it might've been kind, but Lacey knew it was going nowhere.

"...I mean..." Her eyes wandered down toward the ground, not wanting to look Arizona in the eye long enough to confront her own inadequacy. "I've always...been like this. I want to do better - to be better - but I'm never quite...enough. I guess you could say I'm harsh on myself, but...I feel like I deserve it."

[ClockwerkSamurai12]

Arizona: I.. kinda know how ya feel, most of the time I can be rather stubborn.. I didn’t know when to quit, heck when I started exercising to become a wrestler my early training days were tough! But my pa told me something to live by.. “When the going gets tough, the tough get going!”

[CaptainL]

"Huh..?" Lacey turned in Arizona's direction, hearing what she had to say. She blinked a couple of times - in truth, she didn't know what to expect from the cowgirl. But it certainly wasn't this. When she had come forward about her failures and her inadequacies, Lacey was half-expecting to see Arizona laugh in her face, or to tell her she was hopeless - certainly she felt like she was hopeless. She didn't know why anyone would bother with someone like her. But that wasn't what happened at all. Instead...Arizona, it seemed, understood her struggles. And she wanted to...encourage her?

After taking a moment to ponder how strange this all seemed, the green-haired girl inched a few steps closer to her sparring partner's side. "You...struggled like this too? You're so...good, though. Even when you're younger than me." She breathed a short sigh, a little jealous. "I guess I just figured...you were always this way."

[ClockwerkSamurai12]

Arizona: I’ll admit, even if I prove myself stronger against anyone taller than me.. I tend to bite off more than I can chew. But don’t give up, I keep movin’ forward and don’t stop til either me or my opponent has had enough! It’s about perseverance.. things might seem hard at first, but you’ll manage to pull through in the end!

[CaptainL]

Perseverance. Lacey repeated that word in her head - and, as she drew in a breath, she nodded her head sagely. Yes, that was it. That was what it was all about. It might have been hard...but she couldn't give up now. She'd been through hardship in her life - her struggles with her jobs, the pressure to support her family. But she hadn't given up. She'd always kept going, even if she felt like she was ready to break down as soon as no one was looking. Perseverance had gotten her through the hard times, and it had taken her this far, to her biggest job yet! If she just kept that in her heart...nothing would need to stop her!

The more Lacey thought such things through, the more she found herself reinvigorated; ready to throw herself back into the fray and prove what she believed in! A second wind grasped her then; as though the aches and pains in her back didn't bother her at all, she jumped back to her feet, clapping her hands and nodding to Arizona. "That's...that's right!" she cried. "I just...have to keep going! Okay, I'm good! I can do this! Let's keep at it!"

[ClockwerkSamurai12]

Arizona: Atta girl, so.. what other holds to you need me to put ya in?

[CaptainL]

Lacey couldn't let this hold her back for long. She wasn't a quitter - her life up to this point had said as much. She wouldn't have made it as far as she had, and gotten signed to a major company like LAW, if she was going to give up, even if she didn't know she was going to handle it. Maybe it'd hurt...but she'd just have to push past it! And when she jumped back up to her feet, her eyes were narrowed in a determined look of defiance, her body tense and ready!

...Well, at least until Arizona mentioned putting her in some more holds. To that, Lacey blinked a few times, tapping her finger to her chin. She...hadn't actually thought that far. And she was kind of afraid to, knowing how painful the last few holds had been. "Uh...I'm...not sure," she muttered. But then, it hit her. She realized what hold she still needed to overcome, and what she had to master. It was risky - she knew that. Even she had to cringe at the thought of what it might entail. But nothing ventured, nothing gained, she told herself. If she was really going to put her money where her mouth was, and if she was really going to show how brave she could be...she knew what she had to do.

"...I want you to put me in the Texas Cloverleaf," Lacey explained. "The same move you beat me with. I want, at least, to get stronger than I was in our last match. And if I can get better dealing with that, I know I've improved."

[ClockwerkSamurai12]

Arizona: Heh, alrighty then.. but I ain’t gonna be holding back this time! (She puts Lacey in a Texas cloverleaf hold)