Turn It Up

Summerslam 2016

Brooklyn New York, August 20th, 2016 was the place and time. Nerves were shaking, tension was high for this day. It was NXT Takeover Brooklyn II. Pam had a huge match against Kanako, (Asuka) for the NXT Women's Championship. This was set to be Pam's last NXT Takeover. Which by itself was heartbreaking and tough to even comprehend. But when you add in the fact that the next night was Summerslam and both Fergal AND Mercedes had two giant matches of their own..Pressure was accumulating in the center of her chest at an immense, immeasurable amount. Pam put others before herself, almost always and forever. But tonight was her night, she didn't know it, but both Mercedes, Rebecca, and Fergal were all in the audience at Takeover. How could they not be? I mean let's be a hundred percent honest here; those few people, along with a few others like Rami, Kevin, Ashley were the foundation of what NXT was built on. It was incredible to think of the progress that they had all made in just one years time. The night was rolling in fast, and Pam was alone with her thoughts backstage and she had no idea what to expect from the crowd. As the show began; she felt them out, doing her tradition of peeking through the curtains to feel them all out. Get a sense of how they were feeling and how they were going to either appreciate the product they were getting, or complain like idiots. The NXT crowd was one of the best crowds no matter where they honestly were, it was weird, for some reason they appreciated..wrestling more than the main roster crowds did..It was unfortunate, but perhaps it was due to creative direction..err in most fans mind; a lack there of..The direction that the creative office chose to take with most of their Superstars was often complained about and hated by most if not all of the fans either in attendance or at home.

Pam got herself all situated backstage before her match, it was huge. Kanako was an intense wrestler to get in the ring with. She was a tough woman and there was definitely fear and doubt in Pam's heart and mind. But she had to go out there and be Bayley, fearless and determined. As her music hit, Fergal jumped out of his seat and possibly was the loudest person in the entire arena. It was an amazing sight for him to see his baby girl on the big stage like this. The last pay per view for WWE was Battleground, where Pam made her unofficial debut with Mercedes as a tag partner. Sadly she had to reveal in an interview that she was not staying permanently..Not just yet. The fans were ready for her, but WWE's front office wasn't ready for her. It was a tragic thing when that happened. It was the same for Fergal, they had to make sure that their developmental product still was indeed seen as that; a product. And NOT developmental. Pam made her way to the ring with all the nervous energy flowing through her body. Yes she has been to this exact place before, but it was different. She had the trust built up with Mercedes and they had a specific plan of where their match was supposed to go, and how they wanted to get there. With this one? Kanako told her to just, 'Let loose. Kill it'. That wasn't all that specific and it made Pam..nervous, per say. She waited in the ring for Kanako and looked out into the crowd, she eyeballed Fergal, Mercedes, Rebecca..and oh my, Ashley was there too? Pam had no idea she even came out, but that made her feel wicked happy. Her other four horsewomen plus her man were in the crowd? She totally felt like she could take on the world right now if it tried to challenge her. Kanako made her dramatic, intimidating entrance with that NXT Women's championship..As she entered the ring, no time was wasted. The match began.

Fergal sat in the audience and thought to himself how amazing she looked, just how utterly beautiful she looked and how powerful she seemed in the ring. It was definitely her second home next to him. He knew that's how she felt and that is honestly why he was so comfortable with her being in the ring. Granted she was a professional, but at the same time? He still worried about her, I mean let's face it, that's his baby in there getting tossed around all over the place. The match had been going on for quite a while now and it was about time for the finish. Fergal and the rest of them had no idea the finish of the match, nor did they really expect it on how it came about. Kanako hit Pam with a series of violent kicks, and the match concluded. After? Kanako did something no one thought she'd do. She hugged Pam and appreciated what they had just accomplished, definitely a match that people were going to talk about as well as watch over and over again. Mercedes and Rebecca however were devastated when the three count happened, both hung their collective heads down low and just felt really really bad that Pam had been defeated. They really had a hope that she'd be the first ever two time NXT Women's Champion. I mean what a better time to get this done? To be honest there was no one more deserving in all of NXT to take the honor of being the first ever two time champion, but her. Pam walked out of the ring and embraced Mercedes and Rebecca, but the crowd didn't approve of her hugging Ashley very much, but who cares honestly. That is HER friend, not theirs. Fergal was indeed left in the dust on this one and it made him feel like..like a fool. A gigantic fool. He looked down as the main event was scheduled to take place next and just couldn't really find himself a chance to even enjoy it. The thought of just being left in the dust by Pam when she was doing her rounds was clearly thought about before hand and honestly it just..bothered him. The event ended on a note that no one thought, Shinsuke took the NXT Championship. And as happy as Fergal was for his friend to succeed, it was a bit sour from what Pam had done to him a little while ago. As everyone filed out of the arena, Mercedes was looking for Fergal, she wanted to grab him real quick, and take him to the back and see Pam after her the dust settled. But..to her amazement, Fergal was nowhere to be found.

He had take it upon himself to quietly exit the arena and tell nobody at all. This was only because he was somewhat hurt by what she did to him and even though she more than likely didn't even really think about it; didn't make it hurt him any less than it had already. Mercedes went to the back and found Pam, "Girl you freakin' killed it.." She smiled and embraced her friend in a giant hug. "Where's Fergal? I thought the plan was for you two to come see me afterwards.." Pam knew something was wrong, she knew that it wasn't normal for him to just skip out on seeing her especially after a historic night yet again in Brooklyn. "Dude I have no idea, I couldn't find him at all. Maybe he wasn't feeling well or something and and yea. He does have a big day tomorrow so I'd just be patient with him." Pam felt her mood get a little less cheery. It sucked to not have him backstage like that with her. She just wanted to give him a big hug, listen to him tell her how amazing she did and potentially even cry over how proud she was. Now she felt like the entire night was a bust, it felt like the whole thing that she just worked her ass off for was not appreciated by him. Who knows why he really left, neither Pam nor Mercedes knew. But tomorrow was definitely a day to remember. First ever Universal Championship match taking place between Fergal and Colby. Mercedes against Ashley..Women's Title? Big day..Big..day for the company, fans, and other wrestlers..

The only thing keeping Fergal's head on a swivel was knowing that he had to produce in the main event. Summerslam was a huge thing for WWE, it was one of the big four pay per views of the whole year. Coupled with Royal Rumble, Wrestlemania, Summerslam, and Survivor Series. Those were the ones that WWE NEEDED to produce on especially more than the others. As Fergal sat in back, he was now in the zone, this was the time where no one would approach him except the people who apply the paint to his body. This was his time to focus in and get in the zone, one hundred percent..Pam luckily got to be backstage for this one. It was the weirdest thing..The didn't even speak to one another after NXT the night before. No one called, they had to get two different hotel rooms for reasons they both didn't even know, oh wait. It was a surprise that Fergal was even coming there. So there, that's why they didn't room together. There was a ton of awkward tension between them but Fergal couldn't get the image out of his head that she looked right at him, and walked away. It was eating him up inside and he just hated the thought of being second place, or being put on the backburner is a better expression. He sighed as his crew put the paint on him, just that thought..killed him a little. Mercedes' match was coming up, and Pam approached her and jabbed her sides, "BOO!" She giggled as her smaller friend shrieked loudly. "DUDE! I almost freakin' peed. Wanna not?" She laughed a little in return and smiled weakly, Pam smiled a little too, but this wasn't a happy smile, it was a 'I'm so damn proud of you' smile. The two hugged immediately and Pam pulled away first, "Steal the show, sister." Mercedes nodded and slipped her glasses on slowly. What followed was both amazing and horrifying. The match that Ashley and Mercedes had was going all to plan..Right up until Ashley dumped Mercedes on her head on complete accident. The match had a somber tone to it now, Pam and Fergal were in two different spots but were both just as horrified as the other was. Mercedes was clearly hurt, way worse than before..The match ended abruptly and Mercedes was hidden away by the medical staff..Great news considering Mercedes was already battling a back injury that was partially the reason Pam was having to act like a concerned mother about all of this.

Fergal's turn. The fans knew him by now to 'Unleash The Demon' at big events, more specifically Takeovers and now, pay per views. Colby made his entrance and got a pretty decent reaction from the crowd. But as soon as the lights dimmed..and the fans saw Fergal crawl his way out, the Demon was in Brooklyn. The buzz in the arena didn't die down whatsoever. The fans were quite upset at the design of the Universal Title. Red leather and almost a duplicate of the WWE Title, they expected..more. Sigh. Typical if you'd ask me. Anyways their match was going extremely well honestly, they both fed off of each other quite effectively and it was noticeable by both the other wrestlers in back and the fans collectively. There was just..one issue that happened..It wasn't noticed by anyone except Fergal, who had to take it. But Colby likes to utilize this move called the Buckle Bomb. He powerbombs an opponent right into the turnbuckle. Dangerous, yes, but he has been doing it for years..Well this time he went to do it on the barricade..And..Colby released it a little..too early. Fergal tried to brace himself and wound up injuring his shoulder. Fergal popped it back into place and it hurt like a son of a bitch. He then proceeded to be a little badass and finish the match..Capturing the first ever WWE Universal Title. Pam was so worried about Mercedes that she missed the finish, she only saw him holding the title above his head and favoring his right shoulder. She thought nothing of it, but was very happy he won the main event of Summerslam..She was concerned with the aftershocks of this night, the combustible elements were only beginning to bubble at the surface, it was only a matter of time before what happened after Takeover, as well as the potential injuries to both Fergal and Mercedes were addressed by them, as well as the rest of the world.