"Believe" Part 4, the Finale (CD)

Think about the heroes saving life in the dark

Climbing higher through the fire, time was running out

Never knowing you weren't going to be coming down alive

But you still came back for me

You were strong and you believed

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Date: Sunday, June 17th, 2018
Cameras: OFF

THUNK!!

Adrien Cochrane closes the door to his Mercedes-Benz after grabbing a small straw basket. He begins walking away from his car, through a small gate past a chain link fence and into a grassy area. It was sunny in St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana, and Adrien dressed comfortably for such weather with a Yellowcard t-shirt, a pair of khaki cargo shorts, and sunglasses for the occasion.

“There he is!”

Adrien grins a little bit as he sits down in front of a tree, placing the basket right next to him. He opens it before spreading the blanket inside of it. He repositions himself onto the blanket before pulling the basket next to him.

“So, I guess a Happy Father’s Day is in order. I got you your favorite beverage, of course.”

Adrien reaches inside of the basket and pulls out a twenty-ounce bottle of Coca-Cola. He places it beside him as he reaches inside the basket once more.

“I even did the thing online where I got your name on the bottle. Funny how I can never find my name, at least spelled correctly on these things. And there was no way in hell I was going to find one with your name on it otherwise, right? Probably a generic one that says Dad, but you deserve the extra mile. Went to your favorite restaurant too.”

He pulls out the trademark elongated plastic bag by Subway. He reaches inside and grabs the sandwich and places it in front of him. He looks back up and smiles.

“Of course, I couldn’t get your usual order. Can’t eat the cheese, and it’s a bit worse trying to do the tribute with that than it is with your Coke.”

A small chuckle escapes. But the face that followed was less joyful.

“Mom misses you. Alexis and the others do too. I know I’m the only one weird enough to try this little tradition I’ve started, but they do miss you a lot. And I do too. I look at what I brought in today’s little basket and remember that you did your best with what you could provide.”

He looks at the Coca-Cola and Subway sandwich. His family didn’t have the income he now has an adult. While his other brothers and sister weren’t living with them by the time he and Alexis started school, his parents did everything they could to make sure he and Alexis had everything they needed. Even if that meant eating a lot at Subway and Taco Bell.

“I don’t think I would be where I am today if it wasn’t for you. I know a lot of kids would have probably broken down with the hand I was drawn. Mom wanted me to pursue music. You wanted me to pursue athletics. I didn’t want to choose between the wishes of the two of you, so I did everything I could to make both happen. And I did. And I don’t think I would be in a position I am in without that. Music career. Wrestling career…”

Adrien gives a weak smile as he grabs a small thermos containing his earl grey tea. Some people wonder how Adrien can drink a hot tea in June. Adrien had one simple answer for those people: because he wants to.

“I started this whole #Believe back when I was trying to win the EXODUS Pro Heavyweight Championship. Was before you passed, so I know this is probably something I don’t have to explain, but...it was a thing I was starting about how much I believed in myself. That if there was an obstacle and that I had the ability to overcome it. And it became something entirely different. It became about how much everyone else believed in me. And as I sit here, about to eat this turkey breast sub, it reminds me of the first person to believe in me: You.”

A solitary tear begins forming in the pit of Adrien’s left eye.

“Twenty-one days from now, I’m going to be in New York City. Madison Square Garden. One of the biggest venues a wrestler can wrestle in, not by size, but by pure prestige. WrestleForce II...the biggest event in NGW. I know, you’ve seen me in World Title matches before, but...this one is different. This is the pay per view I debuted on. This is the man who, while he’s been my friend a good percentage of the time, has shared a lot of criticism on whether or not I have what it takes. He reminded me how he did, on his own, what I had recruited a team to do. And that’s fine because I have the chance to show him what I can do personally.

“I met someone, by the way.”

The Dropkick King wipes away that one tear of his.

“You missed the boat on Stacy. Didn’t end up as my happy ending, but it is what it is. We lost you right before I lost Becky. But this year, I met someone who I think might really be the one…”

The smile returns.

“Her name is Everalda. She’s the sister of one of my best friends, Jessica. I don’t think you got to meet Jessica, so just take my word for it. She’s as sweet as...well, your Coke over here.”

A twenty-ounce bottle of Coca-Cola contains sixty-five grams of sugar. Which is high.

“She’s one of the most beautiful women I’ve ever seen. She is a supermodel so I guess that’s to be expected. She dances a whole lot better than I do but accepts me for my two left feet anyway. She has a son that honestly could pass himself off as my offspring, honestly. She’s endured so much and is so strong. And she has a heart of gold. She shows so much faith in me no matter what is going on, and it’s something I think pushes me to be a better person. In a way, you can say she believes in me.”

He chuckles before taking a bite out of his turkey sandwich. After swallowing the bite, he washes it down with a sip of his earl grey tea.

“You would have loved her. And she would have adored you. After all, everyone on your side of the family keeps telling me that I remind them of you so much, between our mannerisms, word choices, and general personality traits. Perhaps even that sense of humor that makes so many people groan. Remember that time when I was like sixteen years old, and we were at that restaurant. The girl I had a crush on in high school was there, came up to the table to say hi to us and you just let out one of the most headshaking dad jokes? I’ve probably done that to Adam, Kenzie, Jessica, and probably will for Klaus when he gets older as well.”

Another bite is followed by another sip.

“I wish you were still here. Everyone does. The world was a better place with you here. But you left your mark. You made me the person that I am today. Every time I fight in that ring, it’s because you steered me into this direction. Every time I do anything for Klaus, it’s because you showed me how to be a father by how you raised me. And every time I kiss Everalda on the forehead before we go to sleep, it’s because you showed me how to properly love the way you lovingly treated Mom with chivalry and respect. And most of all, you taught me how to be a man.”

Even Adrien shakes his head at how cliche and corny that came off. Then again, Adrien pretty much makes his living being cheesy at this point, despite his lactose intolerance. He smiles once more as he takes one last bite of his sandwich, licking the honey mustard off his fingers.

“You were one of the greatest men I ever knew. Perhaps ever will know. I hate that you aren’t here anymore. Not around to meet Everalda or Klaus. Not around to see Alexis happy with Stephen. To be there when I try to become the NGW Champion and finally get World Title number four. To walk Alexis down the aisle when the time comes or even be there when I watch Everalda possibly walk down the aisle one day, not that I’m getting ahead of myself or anything. To hold your grandchildren the day they are born or even just hold Klaus for him to call you Paw-Paw. You were taken from us much too soon..”

Adrien’s voice begins to trail off a little bit as he has to wipe his eyes a little bit. He starts rotating the Coca-Cola bottle. It has written on the label “Share a Coke with Ludie”, and as Adrien alluded to earlier, having one with that name definitely had to be special ordered.

“I love you, Dad. I always will. Everything I do, I do it hoping that you’re up there, somewhere, proud of what I’ve done. Thank you for so much more than I could ever put into words. Thank you for always believing in me, the first one who can say they believed. If I win this match, please know that I will be thinking of you when they hand me the championship. For now though, this coke...is for you…”

Adrien lifts the blanket and begins to pour the Coca-Cola on the ground in front of him. Once the bottle is empty, he gives a smile before placing his hand on the headstone and shedding one last tear.

“Goodbye, Dad. I’ll see you on your birthday.”

Adrien packs everything back into the basket as to not leave any litter around. He turns and takes one last look at the headstone before he gets back into his car to drive off.

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Date: Sunday, June 17th, 2018
Cameras: OFF

Adrien Cochrane returns from his little picnic by his father’s grave, feeling as though he honored his memory well today. He exits his car with the basket in hand and starts to head to his door. It was at that moment, he sees a pair of blue eyes looking at him through the window.

Adrien: “What are they up to?”

Adrien twists the doorknob and pulls the door open, only to see Everalda Sears-Theron and her son Klaus waiting for him.

Klaus: “Dada!”

This exclamation seems to drop Adrien’s guard as Everalda smiles. She kneels to her son’s level, keeping her left hand behind her back for some reason, and she looks at him.

Everalda: “You said that perfectly, my little Star-Lord. Do you want to show him your present?”

Klaus: “Yeah! Yeah!”

Giggling, Klaus moves a little backward and carefully takes what’s behind his mother’s back. She was holding for him a medium-sized poster with hearts painted by fingers all around. In the center is a giant heart that’s used a stencil of the alphabet to paint the words “Happy Father’s Day”. Beneath those words are the initials “E.S.T.” and “K.S.T.” Their initials. The twenty-one-month-old toddler makes his way towards Adrien and holds it out for him. Adrien leans down, beginning to feel the emotions he left at the cemetery coming to the surface once more. Adrien gets on his knees and opens his arms for his girlfriend’s son. Klaus runs forward and happily embraces him, trying his best to be careful with the poster he and his mother worked on. Adrien doesn’t say a word, left completely speechless by the poster. Rendering Adrien speechless is not easy, as noted by his reputation to ramble a lot when he is doing his videos about his matches. That makes this all the more impressive. He embraces Klaus in silence for a moment before Everalda finally says something.

Everalda: “You are the father he needs you to be, mein Herz.”

She smiles and moves forward to carefully take the poster from Klaus. This allows him to properly embrace Adrien, smiling and giggling to no end. Everalda kneels down before them yet again, reaching out with her free hand and running her fingers through Adrien’s blonde locks.

Everalda: “Alexander would want this… and so would our fathers.”

Adrien is finally able to speak again.

Adrien: “I haven’t properly earned this yet.”

He chokes for a second, still trying to gain the proper composure to speak his thoughts in an intelligible manner.

Adrien: “I don’t deserve this yet.”

In Adrien’s eyes, he hasn’t done enough to really be Klaus’s father. Their relationship was still fairly new, only a little more than four months into it, and only knowing one another for a little under six. He’s done his best with Klaus, but he was still really new to this role with him. And it’s a job that he feels like he hasn’t quite learned how to do to the best of his ability quite yet. It is when Everalda shakes her head slowly and offers her beloved a gentle smile.

Everalda: “But… can’t you see? Look with your own eyes, Adrien.”

Though he is young, Klaus picks up on Adrien’s emotions. He glances up, his smile never dissipating as he reaches up and places his little hands on the sides of his face. The toddler’s brown eyes light up with joy and hope.

Klaus: “Dada.”

Everalda: “Father, step-father, father figure… this is a day for you as well. Klaus loves you like you are his father. Of course, he will truly understand when he’s older, but… you have done so much for him, more than I could have ever asked for.”

Adrien has to wipe away a tear like he did an hour ago when reflecting on the impact that Adrien’s own father had on him. It didn’t really hit him until just now. This was the kind of impact that he was going to have on Klaus. Everything that Adrien said about how his father, Ludie Cochrane, taught him how to love Everalda by the way that he loved Adrien’s mother, Lois, was only the beginning. The way that Ludie loved Adrien, Alexis, and even their other siblings that had no blood with him...that was the example he set for how Adrien should be towards Klaus. It took this moment, this emotive and heartwarming moment on the floor of Adrien’s living room where the three of them were embracing, for him to realize that it’s more than just cracking dad jokes and causing eye rolls. Even if he somewhat credited his father for this already a couple of hours ago, it became a lot more clear to him what those words really meant.

Adrien: “Thank you.”

Adrien wipes away another tear from his eyes. Leaning closer, Everalda kisses Adrien’s forehead, returning something that he’s always done for her. She blushes a little, smiling as her son’s right hand moves to gently poke Adrien’s nose. Klaus then playfully squeezes it as a child would and he giggles.

Klaus: “Boop!”

Everalda: “That’s not a boop, silly. That’s a ‘got your nose’.”

She can’t help but laugh as she moves closer, one arm around Adrien, the other arm around Klaus, and she embraces them both.

Everalda: “My Star Lords…”

The Dropkick King squeezes both Sears-Therons a little tighter, still trying to have his brain catch up to everything that just happened. It’s almost like he hasn’t quite processed that this was all for real.

Adrien: “I love you both. So much…”

He gently kisses both of their foreheads, Klaus first followed by Everalda. He smiles widely and closes his eyes for a second, trying to savor this moment as much as he possibly can. Everalda returns his smiles, blushes a little, and leans in close to both of them.

Everalda: “I love you too, Adrien.”

Klaus: “Me thwee!”

He’s still working on the R’s, but Klaus is optimistic, smiling at his mother and father. In his young life, in his eyes, he sees Adrien as his dad. That’s what matters the most.

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