Booking Glory-Chapter 33: Debut on Live TV

Two days passed in a mere blink of an eye.

Rob was pretty busy in the days leading up to the weekly show. He had discussed with Mr. Gibson and Robin and had got the women’s division an extra five minutes for this show.

Robin wasn’t very happy with that. But, when Rob explained his reasoning, he had to relent as it made too much sense to ignore. So, there will be 20 minutes featuring the women’s division in the show this week.

There were going to be three segments featuring various female wrestlers in this week’s <Fyre>. And Rob had to run around a lot to make sure that everything was fine with that.

There was Dacey’s promo, which would take a whole ten minutes for itself. Evelyn and Selena will also be making an appearance this week. And the last was a match featuring Alanna.

After thinking about it a bit, Rob decided to be on the safe side and not use half-trained wrestlers as the third feature for the upcoming months. Instead, he decided to focus on showcasing Alanna’s new style of wrestling more.

This would both create momentum for Alanna and also help the developmental talent to ease into the actual stage. And Rob would also use this opportunity to showcase Marie Dawson and Leia Boumont a bit more.

Both Marie Dawson and Leia Boumont have slipped Rob’s mind a bit in the previous days. With Marie being on a sabbatical to heal from a minor injury and Leia on a leave to deal with her cousin’s pregnancy, they have not been present in LWC for a few weeks.

Naturally, Rob had forgotten about them amidst his busy schedule. But, now that he sat back and thought about the potential for the third program these two women popped up immediately.

According to the doctors Marie would take anywhere from another month or two to return from her injury. So, Rob decided to keep her as a backup. Leia was returning to work this week.

Rob didn’t want to put her out there right away. He wanted her to be the one in the third program with Alanna. This would create a good launching pad for Alanna into the next tier.

For this week, the aim was to showcase Alanna’s different styles of wrestling as much as possible. So, she was given a seven to eight-minute match for that. She will be facing one of the developmental talents named Joselyn Rivers.

Joselyn Rivers was the best out of the current batch of trainees in the female division. Her mic work was average and her in-ring skills needed some work. But, what she excelled in was picking up cues and timings perfectly.

Such a skillset was perfect to work with Alanna’s new style. So, Rob informed them of their upcoming match on Monday and they both have been preparing for it since then.

And once this match was over, Rob was planning to use Joselyn next week as well. She will play a pivotal role in the upcoming weeks by being the fodder to make the others shine.

This would give her some much-needed in-ring experience and exposure to the crowd. On the other hand, Alanna would then go on to have a short feud with Leia Boumont.

It wouldn’t be anything riveting. It would be about the difference in their wrestling styles and both trying to prove they were superior. This kind of feud was pretty common in this world.

So, Rob didn’t have to squeeze many brain cells for it. He could refer to some well-booked feuds and use them as an example for it. The main factor was that it would keep both Alanna and Leia relevant.

After that, Rob had planned to include Marie in the picture as well. Making it have more variety. Ultimately, Alanna would prevail and move on to the next stage.

What that stage was not something Rob had decided on yet, but he was planning for Alanna to have a title shot down the line or have an interesting feud with one of the heels he would be putting out in the upcoming months.

"So, kid, you ready?" Dallas asked looking at Rob.

Rob had to take a deep breath to calm his nerves. He was sitting alongside Dallas and Irvin on commentary. The show was set to air in ten minutes and this would be his debut on live TV.

Rob was understandably nervous about it. He didn’t think he would ever don a headset and sit in commentary, but this was his new on-screen role and it was imperative that he did it well.

"No, but it doesn’t matter anyway," Rob grunted palming his pants a little,

"Relax," Dallas said from the other side. "You have both Irvin and me for you to cover up if you make any mistakes. Just be your annoying self like you were in the trials."

"Easy for you to say," Rob grunted gifting Dallas with a smile.

"Good, now let’s go over who will do what. Irvin will start the show. I guess that is why he is sitting in the middle, huh?" Dallas asked snidely.

"Get your gob off Dallas," Irvin grunted in reply. "I am sitting in the middle as a buffer between you two buffoons."

"Ah, right, right," Dallas said causing Rob to chuckle. "Anyway, the new dynamic is that Irvin will take over all the boring announcement parts leaving us with the exciting ones."

"Are you that eager to argue with a young kid on live TV?" Irvin asked bemused.

"Shut up, Irvin, I haven’t had this much fun since I hung up my boots. This is like a promo off between us two. The only difference is that we will be talking all through the show," Dallas said with a smile on his face.

"Well, at least you know what you need to do," Irvin said and turned to face Rob. "Kid, you do understand what you have to do, right?"

"Insult, Dallas," Rob replied with a small smirk. "Insult the wrestlers out there. Insult the crowd. Support the heels. And be an all-round prick on commentary for the entire show."

"God, he is going to be irritating a lot of people by the show is done with," Dallas chuckled.

"That was his aim, right?" Irvin chuckled along. "We are aiming for exactly that. So, you already decided on what to start with."

"Oh, he made plans alright," Dallas said looking at Rob with a cruel smirk. "Look at this." Dallas gestured towards the new T-shirt he was wearing. "Our smartypants here asked me to wear this. I am guessing you will start with this."

"I thought it would be a good way to establish my role," Rob shrugged.

"And get one over Dallas," Irvin said with a bemused smile. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"Nah, he will be in for a tough fight," Dallas shook his head shooting a glare that had no heat at Rob.

"We will see, old man," Rob said getting into the vibe.

"Aint no whippersnapper taking me out kid, you will see the real Dallas soon," Dallas shot back easily.

"Good, you both are on form. One less thing to worry about, and a million more to go," Irvin said looking at the cards on the table. "So, the first segment is a backstage interaction between Evelyn and Selena. Hmmm, interesting choice here. I thought you would go with a match or Dacey."

"We need time to establish myself as a Dacey supporter before her segment comes. So, we have put her segment in the middle. I wanted it in the latter half, but Robin shot it down."

"And the math would be after the opening segment. That way, Dacey can manage the end without worrying about the time she had out here," Rob explained to the two veterans.

"Alright, so do we need to know anything about the Evelyn-Selena segment?" Dallas asked squinting.

"No, it’s pre-taped and it will be just two alphas butting horns. We can hype their Triple Threat Match. This is a continuation of that bad blood," Rob said looking at Dallas.

"That’s good. And I guess you have ideas for Alanna’s match with Joselyn," Irvin asked.

"Nothing specific," Rob shook his head. "I am going to be anti-Alanna. That is the gist."

"Hmmm ok, we have the opening segments settled. The rest doesn’t need any specific needs. You guys can go off based on your mood," Irvin said looking at the rest of the card.

"I will let you pick first, kid. That way, I can segue into it easily," Dallas said nodding at Rob.

"Thanks," Rob smiled in reply.

"Ok, the countdown’s beginning. Let’s get ready," Irvin said looking at the countdown running on the titantron.

Rob took a deep breath and pushed every other thought away and waited for the countdown to end. He did one last check on his mic and himself. He was in a suit that had been specifically made to fit him yesterday.

He wanted to be looking sharp and smart. He took inspiration from Corey Graves and tried to appear as a cool customer as much as possible. His hair was done sleek and he gave off a vibe that was akin to a rich prodigal.

He designed this look yesterday. The idea was to be as contrasting as possible to Dallas. Dallas could be usually seen in casual wear as he maintained the identity of an ex-wrestler. So, Rob went the opposite way to show his contrast to Dallas.

This would be a good preview of their acrimonious relationship on-air. And it would bring something new to the audience as well. Him being a prick all around would tie into his suit, looks, and relationship with Dallas nicely.

<5... 4... 3... 2... 1... Go>

<Pyros... Go>

The opening pyros went off amidst the noisy crowd ushering in yet another episode of <Fyre>. Rob took one last look at the crowd present and turned his attention to the monitor in front of him.

*****

"Hello folks, welcome to yet another weekly television of pro wrestling extravaganza. We are joining you live from Longham City. And this week’s edition of <Fyre> is promising to live up to the standard set by last week’s show," Irvin began by welcoming everyone to the show.

"Yes, Irvin, you are absolutely right. Last week’s edition of <Fyre> had the highest ratings ever. I mean, the highest ratings. I kid you not!" Dallas chimed in hyping last week’s episode.

"And I gotta say, this week’s crowd is more primed than last week’s. Look at them over there. They are truly ready to go!" Irvin gave a callback to the crowd and the camera panned to the crowd capturing their reactions.

"And we have also got an addition to our commentary team. This is Rob Williams. He will be joining us on commentary from now on," Irvin introduced Rob.

"Thank you, Irvin. While I think your introduction of me could be done a little better, I am thankful that you didn’t forget me. To the viewers watching at home and the ones in the crowd. I am Rob Williams," Rob introduced himself snottily pulling at his suit.

"I am the one LWC hired to make things interesting around here. I am here to give you a fresh perspective on all things wrestling. I am here to say it straight and not pander to you like the old timers sitting beside me," Rob said nodding at the crowd eliciting little boos.

"Now that is over with, Dallas, what in god’s green earth are you wearing?" Rob turned to look at Dallas.

"Oh this, this is something I picked up just outside. I hear that this is all the rage these days," Dallas said pointing to his T-shirt.

The camera zoomed in on the shirt. The words <WHY DACEY WHY!?> were displayed on the titrantron, causing the crowd to erupt.

"You hear them, Rob. Like I said, this is all the rage these days. And there are even fans carrying placards with these words out there," Dallas gestured at the crowd.

The camera panned to show fans holding the placards and wearing the same T-shirt across the audience.

"You look like a moron wearing it," Rob said mercilessly. "It shows your standards are as low as these idiots from Longham."

The boos that greeted those statements were really loud. Rob felt a smile forming on his face and hurriedly controlled it. He was really liking his new job.

"Watch your mouth, Rob. Lest I hop over there and smash your teeth down your throat," Dallas growled causing the crowd to cheer him.

"What? I am just saying as I see it. You really look like a moron wearing that T-shirt. If you wanna know why all you have to do is ask Dacey. Just before I came out here, I had a lovely chat with that beautiful goddess, and let me tell you, she was really nice and polite. She had the poise of a queen and she impressed me very much," Rob replied.

"So, did she tell you why she did such a barbaric thing?" Dallas sneered.

"I never asked. And even then, I am sure she must have a reason for it. I am sure Diana did something that pissed off the Goddess and had to pay for it," Rob said smoothly.

"Well, she did have an opportunity to address the crowd last week. But, what she did was something disgraceful to do on national TV," Irvin piped in from the side.

"If these idiots were respectful to the Goddess, she would have given them a reply. Their barbaric behavior disgusted her so much that she had to resort to their level," Rob fired back. "I know I was disgusted by these idiots treated the Goddess last week. Anyone in her place would have done the same."

"You mean flipping off a crowd on live TV?" Dallas asked incredulously.

"Why not? It is not as if they deserve an answer. How many people explain to the world why they do something? Why must Dacey Surestone be an exception?" Rob asked in return causing boos to erupt all through the crowd.

"What she did deserves an explanation. She disrespected this entire business with her heinous acts," Dallas said heatedly.

"According to you," Rob replied smoothly. "But, not everyone thinks like you do Dallas."

Just then the titantron came live and backstage footage rolled in. The audience turned their attention towards it, leaving some respite for the commentators.

Rob anxiously turned to look at the two veterans wondering how his performance was. They gave him a thumbs up to indicate all was well. Rob heaved a sigh and turned to the monitor.

Evelyn was wrapping her arms with tape backstage. The crowd cheered seeing her on the titantron. Just then, Selena came into the frame. The crowd cheered for her too.

It was obvious that both women had good momentum from their match. They also had some traction with the crowd. Rob watched closely as the segment began.

"Selena," Evelyn said in a fake warm voice that couldn’t be any more obvious. "I really didn’t think we would see you around here anytime soon."

Selena merely smiled at that and looked at Evelyn dispassionately.

*****

A/N: Hey folks!

Make sure to add this book to your collection and vote with your power stones to show your appreciation for this work.

You can also check out my other book [Demon Immortal] and see if it is to your liking.

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