He promised Mom we’d be home by 6, we’d make it home, he promised

“You think I’m crazy, don’t you?”

Those are the uneasy words uttered to me as Tony I left the arena, he promises we’ll make it home before Mom finishes dinner, because he promised we wouldn’t be late, he promised.

“Prince, the man you see on TV”

He paused uneasy

“That’s not who I am. “

I was twelve, to me Tony was still a hero in my eyes, but he had his kryptonite, he was losing his shine, he was no longer my dad, my hero, my everything, he was Tony.

“Things, things are just hard to explain. I’ve gotten this new deal, and the company, they want to give me the ball, again, they want me and your uncle Eugene”

“He’s not my fucking Uncle, he’s just your latest friend you’re tagging with.”

I was mad, Eugene wasn’t my uncle, I liked him and all, but, how come all of my uncle’s were more interested in me, than he was?

“This life, this life isn’t easy son, you think I like not being able to take you to dinner without getting mauled by fans? You think I liked missing your 13th birthday?!”

“I’m twelve, Tony”

I’m his only son, and he doesn’t even know how old I am.

“One day, when you have your own family, you’ll understand, sometimes sacrifices need to be mad, sometimes they appear selfish, but everything I do, I do for you, and even your mother.”

He’s a liar, he does it all for himself, he loves the attention, he loves the money, he loves wrestling, even if it cost him us

“Son, I just want you to promise me one thing.”

He’s never kept a promise in his life, not to me at least. He can’t make it to my games, because he has an autograph signing, he makes every other kids dreams come true, except for his own

“Don’t follow in my footsteps. Do things before you have to make a choice, don’t sacrifice the things most important to you, don’t be like me. Prince, promise me you’ll take all the best of me, and not the worst.”

Not a problem, trust me Tony

“Promise me you’ll do right by those who’ve done right by you.”

I’ll have you beat

“And son, promise me that at any cost, you’ll stay away from the wrestling business. People will want you to do this, because of who I am, but this business is evil, it’ll spit you up and chew you out, and when the next big thing comes along, people won’t even remember your name. I don’t want to see you, end up like your old man. Do you hear me Prince?”

“Yeah, Tony”

Now is not the time to be giving fatherly advise, where’s that been the last few years, better yet, where have you been. The last thing I’d ever do is be like you, because you’re everything I don’t want to be.

“Promise me son, promise me.”

Unlike you, I’ll keep my promises

“I promise Tony, I promise.”

“Thank you son, thank you, and know that I love you, always.”

As we come to a slow stop, he tells me he loves me, and gets out of the car to do one last photo shoot, before we head home. He says he loves me, he wants me like to be like him, he sure does want a lot. All I want to do Is be home for dinner, the one thing I’ll never be, is like Tony Pride. I’m Prince Pride, I’ll be a success, I’ll make people proud, I won’t be selfish, and I’ll never, ever, under any circumstances, have anything to do with the wrestling business. I promise!

“…I PROMISE!”