Pop

It was the longest match MJ had wrestled so far, and she was breathing so hard and so fast she was afraid she would pass out. MJ didn’t know if that was the result of being pushed harder and further in the ring, or her nerves (which were still like a jar full of fireworks), or if it was both.

The crowd did seem bigger that night, and a lot of them appeared to recognize MJ when she’d come out in her Lightning Girl mask.

It surprised her. Deep down MJ didn’t believe anybody had really seen the video of her online, and even if they had, Tika certainly couldn’t be right about the video bringing more people out to the shows.

Who would pay money to see her, after all?

But it looked as though Tika was right, and MJ wasn’t sure whether that made her feel happy and excited, or sad and terrified.

She still wasn’t comfortable or experienced enough to do any complicated holds or slams, and she was too small to believably muscle her opponent around the ring anyway.

MJ was learning the crowd liked it when she jumped around, so that’s what she did. Duchess ran at her, and MJ leaped over her head. That was called a leapfrog, and it looked even more impressive because Duchess was so much taller than her. The crowd cheered. MJ turned around and Duchess charged her again, faster this time, and she yelled angrily like MJ was frustrating her. MJ leaped over her a second time, and the crowd in the school cheered even louder.

Their voices went quiet suddenly when Duchess stopped short after running underneath MJ and quickly turned around, clotheslining MJ to the canvas.

The crowd booed as she hit the mat.

The clothesline, and the impact of Duchess’s larger body colliding with hers, had actually hurt way more than the bump. MJ didn’t think Duchess was trying to be stiff with her. The much more experienced wrestler was just being a good villain.

MJ sucked air through her nose and exhaled through her mouth as Duchess dragged her to her feet.

“Move,” she whispered to MJ before she whipped her hard into the turnbuckles.

MJ lay against the corner and waited. She knew that Duchess wanted her to move out of the way when she ran at MJ. Her opponent screamed like she was about to murder the young Lightning Girl, and then Duchess charged, crashing into the turnbuckles as MJ slipped from her path.

MJ, or rather Lighting Girl, had an opportunity to take control of the match. Duchess was curled up against the turnbuckles as if she were really hurt.

The problem was that Duchess hadn’t told MJ what to do after she moved out of the way.

Nothing was coming into her head. She didn’t know what to do.

Fortunately, Tika had given her some advice before MJ went out for the match.

“If you get stuck, and you can’t talk to your opponent, just go with what you know.”

“What do I know?” MJ had asked her, and even though it was an honest question, Tika couldn’t help laughing.

“Gymnastics,” she told MJ. “You’re great at gymnastics and you can do tumbles and all that stuff without thinking. That’s how we pulled off that big spot at the end of our match. Just throw some flips in there if you get stuck and add a bump at the end. It’s a short walk between a gymnastics move and a wrestling move.”

With Duchess still waiting and selling that she was hurt, MJ backed all the way into the opposite corner of the ring and charged across the mat at her opponent. As she ran, she performed a cartwheel and then a perfect back handspring flip before letting gravity fling her spine into the other corner.

A loud thrill swept through the crowd as they watched MJ tumble. This time, however, it was Duchess’ turn to move out of the way and MJ’s turn to crash and burn in the corner.

That didn’t matter to MJ, though. She’d heard them react to her flip, and that sound made her feel awesome.

Duchess apparently decided it was time for the finish. She picked up MJ with ease and put her on top of the turnbuckles. Climbing up the corner after her, Duchess hooked her for a suplex and the next thing MJ knew her entire body was pointed upside down ten feet above the canvas as they both fell through the air.

Just as they’d practiced, MJ turned her body with Duchess’s help so that she landed on top of the woman when they hit the mat.

MJ was pinning her, and the referee dropped down to his knees to make the count.

The whole crowd seemed to have a single voice in that moment. That giant voice counted eagerly along with each slap of the referee’s hand, excited for Lightning Girl to upset Duchess and win the match. People even started rising from their seats and standing in anticipation of the victory.

Just before the three-count, however, Duchess rolled backward and took MJ’s body with her, reversing things so that she ended up on top of MJ with MJ’s shoulders pinned to the canvas.

This time the referee counted all the way to three, and Duchess was the winner.

The crowd booed louder than MJ had heard them boo at any Saturday night show she’d witnessed.

“Good job, kid,” Duchess panted before she climbed off MJ.

MJ had to once again remind herself not to say “thank you” out loud, or even nod, because they weren’t supposed to be talking to each other.

The compliment made her happier than she could’ve explained, anyway.

MJ continued to lie there as Duchess soaked up the jeers of the crowd for a few moments longer. Duchess climbed up the turnbuckles and taunted the people in the front row, drawing even more heat.

After her opponent finally left the ring, MJ slowly got to her feet to do the same.

That’s when the strangest thing happened. MJ heard a few people clapping for her, which was nice. A few more people started clapping, and then a few more after that.

Within seconds, the entire audience was applauding her, loudly.

Somewhere beneath that, MJ heard a single voice call out, “Lightning Girl!”

Someone else followed by yelling, “Chica!”

That simple word was repeated by half a dozen other people, and their voices slowly joined together to begin a chant.

“Chi-ca! Chi-ca! Chi-ca!”

The rest of the crowd was quick to join in, and soon everyone was chanting.

“CHI-CA! CHI-CA! CHI-CA!”

It grew so loud that MJ’s knees began to shake.

She couldn’t believe what was happening. MJ stood there, with close to two hundred people chanting her name like she was a hero.

She remembered thinking that it was a good thing no one could see her sweat under her mask.

MJ hoped in that moment no one could see her cry under the mask, either.