Story Preview: July 2018 (Warning: Spoilers)

Summer’s in high gear and the heat is on in this month’s stories. Click and be spoiled on the matchups. Don't click and be surprised. It's all up to you.

This month, the stories are smaller casts with a focused narrative. The matches are personal and they happen outside The Cave or a ring. The guys just need or want to wrestle each other, so they do it. How will things work out? That I won't spoil, but here's a teaser on who's wrestling who and the opening text for each story.

July 1: The Cave Unleashed 7: Beau vs. Toby

Beau, Toby and their boss Keith.

This is a matchup I've teased for a little while. With brothers Toby and Beau, the natural order is reversed. Younger is bigger, older is smaller. Younger is perfect, a leader and a protector. Older feels underappreciated and unnoticed. Younger is alpha. Older wants to be an alpha, but he's forced to be a beta.

Yes, Beau's a confident young bodybuilder who everyone loves. Including his older brother Toby. However, even the best of brothers could get tired of his little brother being superior. And Toby's not exactly the best of brothers. Ever since Beau's big growth spurt when they were kids, Toby's been dealing with this strange dynamic. And the studs still live, work and play together, so naturally tensions will rise. And unnaturally, too.

What can Toby do against a muscle god? Or maybe the better question is, what will he do and how far will he go?

Our Cabin 

“What's this, bro? WWL is starting in like two minutes.” 

“Don't care. I'm watching the Rebels.”

“C’mon, Tobe. Wrestling vs. basketball? You don't even like basketball.” I ignore my younger brother’s comment, just staring at the TV. He says, “Seriously, Toby? I told you I had a brutal day. Keith was riding my ass all fucking day. I was so close to snapping. I need to chill or tomorrow your baby bro’s gonna get fired for beating the shit outta his boss.” 

Beau hovers behind the couch. At 6’1”/230-lbs of huge muscle, my 21-year old brother is a big man. And he's showing off his massive muscles, wearing only a short white towel. He's freshly showered, but still pumped from a long day’s work at the farm we help manage. We share this cabin, but even though I'm older, he's bigger, stronger and thinks he's the man of the house. Worst part is, you think he'd be an idiot, but he's smarter than me, too. Book smarter, anyway. I love my kid brother, but sometimes I get tired of his perfection. And other things. 

I tell him, “I was here first. Watch in your room. If it's good enough for your porn wrestling, it'll be good enough for your pro wrestling, too.” 

“Why’re you being a jerk about this?” 

The game goes to a commercial. I pause the DVR then turn to my bodybuilder brother, “A jerk? You think I'm being the jerk here?” I’m shirtless and going commando in my thin athletic shorts. I'm not a muscle monster like my brother, but I'm no weakling. I'm an in-shape 5’11”/175-lbs. I roll my shoulders back then hold the remote up, “Okay. You want it? Take it.” 

When Beau reaches for it, I quickly pull it forward. He stretches out, leaning over the couch and me. Leaving himself wide open. With my free hand, I give him a hard shot to his right ribs. THUD! Thanks to his thick muscles, he might not even feel it, but I got two more fast ones for him. THUD! THUD! Beau pauses, his torso hanging parallel to the floor over the couch. 

My younger brother stops reaching, “What're you doing?” 

I tell him, “Defending my turf, little brother.” I only call him my little brother when I'm provoking him or mocking him.

Beau suddenly smiles, “That how you want to play this, big brother?” He calls me big brother ironically, as an insult. “I'm pissed off at Keith and you're pushing me? Gimme the remote before you get hurt.”

July 15: The Cave: The Adventures of SuperStar 16

Jae and Jackson (Jax).

Speaking of rivalry, a current and ex-boyfriend hit the mats for a fun mat battle, but how fun can it be? Jae loves Cody. They've been together for months and things are amazing. Bodybuilder cop Jackson loved Cody, too. And still might, if Cody is to be believed. With Jax back on the scene, Jae's wary, but he's somehow accepted Jax as a client then a challenge to hit the mats. Yeah, he can't quite figure it out either.

Is Jae making a big mistake? Is Jax up to something? Or is this all just innocent happenstance?

Cody's Gym


“Oh, fuck, Jae. That was wild.”

“Thanks, Jax. You were amazing. Best I've ever had.”

The bodybuilder smirks, “Appreciate that, but you're young. You haven't had that many, yet.”

I shake my head, “I'm serious. You're incredible. I can push you hard and you can take it. Hell, I think you actually enjoy the pain. All my clients should be like you.”

Jackson nods, “I love this workout, Jae. Guys were right. You're a really creative trainer.”

I act surprised, “Guys? You checked me out?”

Jax shrugs, “I'm a cop. It's what I do. I'm sorry if that seems weird, but I don't make a ton of money. Can't be wasting it on a trainer unless I'm going to see results.”

I'd heard he was asking questions about me. Actually ‘warned’ is more accurate. I'm happy to know the real reason why. I hold up my hands, “It's okay. People should check out trainers before just working with them. To be honest, I wasn't sure that I could show a natural bodybuilder like you anything new. I mean, what you're doing is obviously working.”

“Not like this. Shit, you worked me out, bro. Look at the pump in these legs. They're still trembling. It's been years since they were challenged like that. A few more sessions and I know I'm gonna see a huge difference. Oh shit, I gotta motor. Where's the shower?”

I point at the door in the back of the gym. Jackson aka Jax grabs his bag and freshly dry-cleaned uniform then heads to clean himself up. I peel off my shirt and start to tidy up the gym area. Using Cody's gym is great. I have to do all the cleaning, but at 22 and right out of college, I'm happy to get the work, even if I was nervous about taking Jax on as a client.

Yes, Jax is a cop and a natural bodybuilder, so I wasn't sure I could help him. But that's not the main reason I was nervous. He's also my boyfriend’s ex. Cody's 29 and he's been with a ton of the guys we hang out with, but Jax is the first one I've met who wasn't just a hookup. It was a relationship with feelings. That's a lot different.

At first, I was suspicious of him wanting to hang around. Cody had even told me that Jax seemed into him again, but Cody thinks everyone is into him. Usually, he's right, but this time it was right after they wrestled, they were naked and Jax was horny. Plus, he realized how much Cody's evolved as a person. So maybe he was into Cody at that exact moment, but it's been a few weeks and the guy hasn't made a move since.

As we shake hands, Jax checks me out, just like I checked him out. I'm shirtless and sweaty from cleaning. It feels like he wants to say something, but he stops himself. I'd let it go, but if we're going to work together, we need to be upfront with each other.

I ask, “What? You look like a man with a question.”

Jax says, “You're good at reading guys, too. I was just thinking.” He pauses, “No, it might be too weird.”

“What?”

“What if we wrestled one day soon?”

I laugh, “Yeah, that'd be weird.”

Anyway, the hot stud nods, “Sure. Thought it might be. It's just tough to find quality opponents sometimes. Looking at you, that body, I saw an opportunity to get a challenge.”

I nod, “Yeah, I get it. It'd be weird, but …”

“But?”

“But, let's be real. It's weird that you're even here being trained by me. Weird isn't necessarily bad. Let me think on it. Discuss it with Cody. Okay?”

Enjoy July!

Alex