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I know your anger, I know your dreams. I've been everything you want to be.
And it's almost true. CM Punk has been almost everything Max Friedman wants to be. He certainly knows Max's anger, but his dreams? Max doubts Punk knows about those.
You don't have to follow me. Only you can set me free.
Don't worry, Max thinks, listening to the familiar music. I won't follow you, I'll lead you. You can follow me back to greatness, but I'll never set you free. I waited seven years for you to come back, and I won't let you go again.
But doubt creeps in as it always does where Punk is concerned. What if he does leave again? What if this isn't enough for him? What if Max isn't enough for him?
I exploit you, you still love me.
Asshole, Max thinks fondly as he makes his way to the tunnels. We're both manipulative bastards, and you're even more honest about it than I am, but they love you still. They won't see how similar we are, but they will. You will.
Oh good. Punk has a microphone. Max waits and listens, confident that he's the only thing Punk wants to talk about. He's right.
Hello Cleveland. How's everybody doing tonight?
You care, don't you? You actually care how they are. How they feel. Max doesn't understand, but he accepts it as an integral part of the man. Punk will always care about the fans, but as long as he cares about Max more it's not a problem.
Are you sick of hearing me talk yet?
Yes. Stop talking to them. Me now.
...I'm dressed to fight. I got the long-bois on!
Yes, he does. The long tights are fine, but it seems a shame to cover those thighs.
Y'all know who I want to fight.
Yes, they do. We all know who you want. Max is glad Punk finally knows it too.
Look, from last week. I got myself a little bit of a souvenir.
Oh. He's wearing Max's scarf. Not just any Burberry scarf but Max's scarf. The one with his name on it. Punk has kept the scarf for a week. He's traveled with it, worked with it, slept with... Max absently helps himself to Tony Khan's water. His throat is suddenly a little dry.
I thought maybe this was sentimental to him.
No Punk, it's not sentimental, although he wouldn't mind having it back now that it's been wrapped around Punk's neck for a week. But Max is thrilled that Punk has put so much thought into this. Not thrilled enough to agree to a scarf-on-a-pole match but thrilled nonetheless.
What I need is MJF in this ring.
Well if Punk needs him and is willing to admit it on live TV, Max supposes he can oblige. But why not make him beg a little first? Max knows when to play hard to get.
I've chased him...
Is Max supposed to feel bad about that? Max has been chasing Punk for years, he can do the chasing for a while.
I want MJF and I want him now!
How badly do you want me? Max wonders as he nods to cue his music. As badly as I've wanted you for all those years since you left?
All those times I stood across the ring from some nobody, wishing they were you. All the times I cursed my own bad luck at going pro just one year after you left. For all those times you made me wait, I've made you wait for me.
Do you want to see us wrestle right here, right now? No.
The unwashed idiots in the crowd may be ready to see it, but Punk hasn't earned it yet. Besides, Max isn't going to give himself to a Punk whose head is still full of promos and cheers. When they fight, Max will have all of him.
I'll give you the match you've all been waiting for next week, in Chicago, Illinois.
Punk lets out a small laugh, and Max knows he has him. All of him. In Chicago, Punk will be at his best. He'll be as real as he ever gets and that's what Max wants. He's waited and wanted for far too long to settle for anything less.
This match, it's a dream match.
And it is. It's one of those dreams Max has that Punk will never know about. Facing CM Punk in Chicago was always the plan, right from the start, before Max even started training. Granted, Max had originally imagined it being in a WWE ring, but this is even better. Chicago may be Punk's backyard, but Punk is in Max's house.
These people are frothing at the mouth for CM Punk vs MJF. They want it!
Welcome to my world, Max thinks with disdain. None of you want it as much as I do, so you'll get it when I decide to give it to you. That goes for you too Punk. You're on my timetable now.
It is the outcome that is going to be very upsetting.
For Max too. While he will delight in his victory over Punk, a part of him will feel sadness as he beats him. But it's necessary for Punk to truly find his way again.
Do it here bitch!
Certainly not. Punk is eager, and Max is pleased, but he can't be allowed to take charge, to think he is in control here.
After I win, you people are finally going to get to see the real CM Punk.
You're welcome. The idiot masses think Tony Khan brought CM Punk back to them. Or that their enduring love and loyalty brought him back. Or maybe even that the painted freak Darby Allin brought him back. They're wrong. CM Punk is not back. Not yet.
The CM Punk who blames all of his failures on everyone else but himself.
This time your failure will be my fault, Max vows. But you'll thank me in the long run. You'll be better for it, and you can finally become the man I've been waiting for.
Will soon say... I'm leaving wrestling again.
Max won't allow it of course. Not this time. The very idea makes him feel sick. But he knows that Punk will want to run, to hide away rather than let the people see the real Punk.
He would never leave us again, he loves us!
Morons. It's not you he loves. He's not here for you. You weren't enough to keep him last time, and you won't be enough this time. Luckily for you, MJF is here to do what you people never could.
He left all of you, and he left all the fans who loved him and supported him...
And it still hurts. Max loved him. Max supported him. And it wasn't enough. But Max will be enough this time. He has to be!
He turned his back on each and every one of you.
On Max too. And if it happens again... Max can't think about that. He won't let it happen again. If he faces Punk in Chicago, if he can beat him there, Punk won't be able to leave. He'll have to stay, to keep chasing Max.
You think he gives a damn that you spent the last seven years chanting his name at the top of your lungs?
No one called for him more than Max. No one yearned for him more than Max. His very soul screamed for Punk every time he stepped into the ring with someone who wasn't him and that's why Max knows he won't allow himself to be abandoned again. He can't, because he doesn't think he could survive it a second time.
All those chants aren't gonna stop him from turning his back on you again.
I'm what's going to stop him, Max swears to himself. I can do what no one else ever could, because we are meant for each other. Punk will understand when Max beats him. When Max shows him what has been here, waiting for him, all along.
You're a fan
I was, Max admits. But now I'm so much more. In fact, once I show you what we can do, the magic we can make together, you'll be my fan. Lucky for you, I treat my fans better than you did.
If I didn't come back, well you wouldn't have your brush with greatness that you're currently having.
Don't be silly. Greatness is waiting for us both in Chicago. You won't be great until you've taken everything I throw at you and come out the other side. My side.
Poor little Maxwell. Sitting at home, watching his hero on television.
He's not entirely wrong. Max is bitter, and he can't hide it. He hasn't forgiven Punk for leaving, for not waiting for Max when it was so clear that they were meant to be together.
Again, Max is shocked at the depth of Punk's understanding. He knows Max so well, and Max isn't sure he likes it.
But I would rather be me... than be you.
But you can't be you without me. You'll see what I've done for you and you'll beg for my forgiveness when you're broken at my feet and you finally know where you belong. Firmly in second place.
They love me because I get back up!
And first, someone has to knock you down. It's where you're most comfortable Punk. How can you rage against authority when there's no one taking control? You need someone to push against, who has more than enough strength to push back. You need to be the scrappy underdog and you can only be that after I beat you at your best.
This breaks Max's heart, but it has to be done. Punk has to know that he can trust Max to take him down when he needs it. As his boys swarm Punk and Spears brings the chair down on his back, Max can't hold back a satisfied smile. This is how it should be. This is where Punk belongs.
How about you get up now you dumb son of a...
There you go. Max startles a little when Punk swipes at him, but he's thrilled to see it. Put CM Punk in a position like this and he fights. He rallies and won't quit until he wins. That's the important thing. He. Won't. Quit. And Punk will never win as long as Max is here. So he'll stay. He'll stay with Max.
Powerbomb him!
It hurts to do it, but Max knows Punk can take it. His body will break but his spirit will be forged like steel. Every blow will be remembered to be repaid tenfold later. But later will never come, and Punk will never get the chance to pay Max back. All that matters is that he'll keep trying.
Max takes his scarf back. It smells like Punk and hey, turns out Max is sentimental about it after all.
Punk's body is clearly hurt, but Max wants to be certain. Wants to make sure that Punk never gives up on him. He takes a seat on Punk's chest and crosses his legs, loving every ounce of anger radiating from the crowd. They will never occupy space in Punk's brain, never matter to him the way Max does, and that's what will be different this time. That's what will make Punk stay.
If Max's love wasn't enough to keep Punk around, maybe hatred will do the trick.