Fractus
Genre: Drama
Director: Shaka King
Writers: Mo Buck & Jimmy Ellis
Cast: Aldis Hodge, Brian Tyree Henry, Regina King, Keke Palmer, Jared Keeso, Luke Macfarlane, Bill Camp, Shaun Ricker
Plot: The atmosphere is festive inside the locker room after the National Wrestling Federation weekly taping. Tyler King (Aldis Hodge) sits on a bench, wiping sweat off his face, a championship belt hanging in his locker. He gets a high five from fellow wrestler Logan Jackson (Luke Macfarlane) who congratulates him on another barn burner. The other show stealer, Teddy Dubois (Jared Keeso) enters the locker room, his face covered in blood. He gives Tyler a hug and congratulates him on another great match. He reminds him that's why he's a champion and it's a privilege to share the ring with him. While Teddy leaves to the showers and the other wrestlers are busy talking to each other, Tyler grabs his cell phone and sees he has a plethora of missed calls; a couple from his girlfriend and most of them from his mom. He reads a text and tells Logan he has to bounce. He quickly stuffs his gear and belt in his bag and leaves in a hurry. Just as he leaves, the promoter, Bill Leesworth (Bill Camp) enters the locker room to congratulate everyone on another successful taping. He looks around for Tyler, but Logan tells him he left in a hurry. Bill mutters something under his breath and leaves.
Tyler enters a hospital and picks up his pace in a panic. He stops at the main desk and asks where his brother is, Ray is. His mother, Hazel (Regina King) hears him and goes over to the main desk. He asks her if he's alright and she says he's fine and awake. Tyler is angered because he warned his brother multiple times to stop using and he swore to him that he'd get clean. He says it's killing him every time he goes on the road, wondering if he'll get a call like that and that time, it'll be over. Hazel tries to calm him down, saying he must go easy on him now, he doesn't need to get lectured, he needs their support. Tyler wants to give him a piece of his mind, but Hazel asks him if he thinks it's easier for her. She nearly lost her son again. That's the worst thing that can happen and yet she doesn't raise her voice against Ray. She says if he goes in Ray's room, he must promise her he won't lose his temper. Tyler sighs heavily and promises he won't lose his temper. His mother warns him that he better not.
Tyler slowly enters the room housing Ray (Brian Tyree Henry). Ray hooked up on some wires, smiles as he enters and jokingly says, “the champ is here!” as loud as the fatigued man can. Tyler asks him how he is feeling, he’s been better. Ray seems really laid back for the position he is in, welcoming his brother to sit on the bed. Tyler sits on the bed, and the silence is deafening, not one of them says a word. Ray instead reaches out for Tyler’s hand, a sense of helplessness in his eyes. Tyler looks at him, a tear falling from Ray’s eye. Without even mentioning it he can tell his little brother is disappointed in him. Tyler then begins asking why Ray had to go back on his word. Ray begs for him to stop, for them not to have this conversation now, not here. Tyler just wants to know why, what’s so bad in his life, that he wants to scare his little brother, a man that has looked up to him since he was a little kid, half to death. He’s just waiting on the day, the day he gets a phone call saying it’s over, Ray isn’t here anymore. Ray apologises to his brother in a broken voice. Hazel comes in after hearing Tyler’s voice raised and takes him out of the room.
After his mother threw him out of the hospital, Tyler drives to his girlfriend's apartment. Ava (Keke Palmer), who was nervously pacing around the living room, opens the door as soon as she hears Tyler knock. She asks him if Ray's going to be alright and he says it was just a scare, like always. She gets mad like Tyler was because he swore to them he'd get clean. Tyler shares her anger, saying he's mad his mother threw him out. She needs to stop protecting her son and realise Ray needs a wake up call, because he doesn't realise the consequences his actions have on them. They sit on the couch, Tyler still visibly mad. She cuddles with him, asking him how the taping went, trying to break the silence. He grabs his bag and takes out his championship belt. Tyler's previously stoic face now has a large grin. He tells her he's still the champ. She congratulates him, saying no one is better than him. They start kissing and Tyler drops the belt on the floor.
Hazel puts the last plate on the table and sighs in relief. She goes to the living room and asks Ray how he's feeling. He's all curled up on the sofa, watching television. He says he's fine, but it doesn't look like he is. She says he stayed three days at the hospital, and this is last day out, so he must tell her if he's not feeling well, but he assures her he's fine. She reminds him that Tyler is here to make amends tonight so he better man up and apologize to his brother. He's dismissive of her, as if she didn't exist. She sits next to him and with a stern tone, tells him that she's done with the bullshit and wants him to get clean, because she can't take it anymore. She's interrupted by the doorbell, Tyler and Ava are here. She opens the door all smile and she's quickly followed by Ray who taunts his brother. Ava says Ray looks alright, but Tyler says he's seen better days. Hazel, to relieve some of the tension, invites them in. She says dinner is ready and Tyler apologizes for being late, Ava took forever to get ready. While Hazel serves dinner, Tyler takes the time to ask Ray if he's alright and he answers that he's tired of answering that question. Tyler claps back, saying he's tired of Ray's attitude towards them. Hazel comes back with food and asks her sons to stop, changing the subject, talking about Tyler's upcoming schedule. The rest of dinner goes well with no mention of Ray's brief stay in the hospital. After he's done with dessert, Ray goes to the bathroom. He looks at himself in the mirror and opens the pharmacy. He grabs a couple of Hazel's prescription pills. He hesitates but ends up swallowing them.
Tyler speaks with Hazel, imploring her to keep an eye on Ray in the foreseeable future, he has to go on tour with NWF in the coming days. Hazel says that she of course will. Wishing him luck on the tour. Ray comes out of the bathroom and takes his seat once more. The four of them sit their in silence with Ava breaking it. She brings up the story between Ray and Tyler wrestling in the backyard when they were children. This makes Ray laugh, as he begins to tell the story. He finishes the story by telling Ava that Tyler was and rather still is the best of the best, he places a hand on Tyler’s shoulder saying that he’s just waiting for his biggest break. A smile falls upon Tyler’s face, one that seemed lost, at least for a long time anyway, the same smile formed on the face of Hazel, a happiness at her boys bonding as they once did.
Tyler and Ava hug both Hazel and Ray as they leave for the night. As they walk Ava tells him that it went well. Tyler looks to her nodding, it did, or as well as it could have.
Opening night of the NWF tour, Tyler is facing “Bravo” Eli Barry (Shaun Ricker) in a ladder match for the title. We can see that we are nearing the end of the match as both men are out on their feet. Tyler heads to one side of the ladder and Billy to the other, the two begin to climb. Once the two of them reach the top, they trade blows, eventually Tyler is able to throw Billy off the top of the ladder and retrieve his championship belt. After receiving applause from the few hundred in attendance, Tyler retreats to the back. As soon as he gets back there Bravo shakes his hand and brings him in for a hug, he thanks him for the best match of his career. Tyler laughs and smiles, claiming to be in it for the others. Several others including Teddy Dubois and Logan Jackson gather as Bill Leesworth gives a speech on the success of tonight’s show. After the speech he calls Tyler over and tells him that he has received word from the giants of professional wrestling and they have told him they are willing to offer Tyler a large contract to wrestle with the best the world can offer. He continues in saying that when they reach Orlando, the big league will be sending out a talent relations officer to speak to him. Tyler, excited shakes Bill’s hand. He then retreats back to his locker to tell Ava the great news over the phone. Instead he is bombarded by missed calls from Hazel, he fears only for the worst.
Tyler arrives at the hospital in a hurry, desperately looking for his brother. He gets aggressive with the front desk lady which prompts her to call security to restrain a concerned Tyler. Hazel heard the cacophony. With tears running down her face, she looks at Tyler who now realizes that he's too late. She urges security to get away from her son and they hug for a while. They slowly make their way to Ray's room where Tyler kneels beside his brother's corpse. He asks her what happened and she says he overdosed again. She left for groceries and when she came back she saw him laying on the couch and she called the ambulance, but it was already too late. He wonders where he could've acquired drugs if he didn't leave the house and Hazel swears that she was gone for an hour, tops. She struggles to talk and Tyler hugs her, with tears coming down his face. He says he's sad he missed his last moment, but at least they made amends the last time they saw each other.
A couple of days later, Ray's funeral is held. There's a small gathering, a couple of childhood friends, but it is quite a sad scene. Ray didn't have many friends, at least the kind who show up to funerals. Hazel notices it and makes the comment to Tyler, who says that at least Ray had them and that's all that matters. Tyler stands between Ava and Hazel as people give them condolences. Tyler supports his mother, who's trying to look strong, but is balling her eyes out. The reverend ask Hazel to say a few words in Ray's honor, but the desperate look she gives her son, makes him understand that he's passing the duty over to him. Tyler suddenly feels a rush of emotions coming, like a lump in his throat. He gathers his thoughts, clears his throat, and says that Ray was his biggest fan and will always be. They might not have always seen eye to eye and they both did things they regretted, but they loved each other. Wherever he is now, Tyler knows Ray will keep an eye on him. He hopes to see him on the other side. With teary eyes, he rejoins Hazel and Ava who offer him support, as Ray's casket is lowered six feet under.
Tyler and Hazel sit in the backseat as Ava drives them home. Hazel blankly stares out the window as Tyler holds her hand for comfort. Ava continuously looks into the rear vision mirror and gives Tyler a reassuring smile, as if to say he is doing good. Arriving home, Ava mentions that there is a car in the driveway. Tyler opens the door for his mother and begins walking her inside. Stepping out of the other car is Bill Leesworth. Tyler shakes his head, upset that he would come to his mother’s house. Ava takes Hazel’s arm and takes her inside. Bill and Tyler have a conversation. Tyler is pissed. Why would Bill come to his mother’s house on a day like this. Bill apologises to Tyler about his brother’s passing. He reminds Tyler, however that they will be heading to Orlando in 2 weeks. Tyler says that he knows but now is not the right time. Bill tells him that even before Ray’s death Tyler felt distant from the company, and he fears that now he may be distancing himself even more. Tyler is becoming even more agitated, and when Bill tells him if he isn’t at the next show, he will be dropping the title, he becomes angry. He, however, composes himself and walks away, he thanks Bill before telling him to fuck off.
Tyler and Hazel sit at the dining table, once more he holds his mother’s hand. Ava carries out a hot cup of coffee for Hazel and sits down with them. They all sit in silence. Seeing his mothers face brings sadness to Tyler. He smiles, beginning to recount a memory he held with Ray when they were boys. Hazel looks to Tyler a small smile appears on her face. They once again sit in silence and this time, it is Ava who asks Hazel a question. She wants to know she left Ray alone when she knew he was in a time of need. Hazel gets defensive and wants to know if Ava is accusing her of being a bad mother, because she didn't know everything that went down in this house. She's the one who had to clean up after him, all the time. She was there by his side every single day. Seeing her comment hurt Hazel, Ava apologizes and Hazel refuses her apology, saying she won't accept that kind of talk in her house. She apologizes to Tyler and kicks them out of the house. Once they get in the car, Tyler wants to know what that was all about and Ava says she just noticed Hazel get defensive and she finds the whole thing suspicious. Tyler doesn't bother answering and starts the car.
Hazel looked from the window and once their car is out of the driveway, she walks to her bathroom and into the cabinetry. She opens it up, and grabs her prescription pills. As she opens it she drops the container and the pills in the sink, slinking to the ground, crying. A sense of guilt is written all over her.
Tyler sits in silence on a bench at the gym. He looks to Ava who is on the other side of it and sees another man staring at her and Ava talking to him, all smiles. He walks over to them and ask Ava what's going on here if she's only doing that to make him jealous. The other man walks away and Ava argues, saying she didn't know she couldn't talk to someone else without his permission. He says he doesn't understand what got in her lately, but she's getting on his nerves. Ava understands his brother just passed, but it was only a matter of time, life still has to go on, he can't let it get the better of him. He can't believe what she's saying and leaves the gym.
Tyler is in the ring, mid-way through a match. He seems out of it, he doesn’t want to be there. He then looks to the crowd and sees Ray. He tries to shake it off but can’t. He is up top on the rope and goes for a simple dive onto his opponent, "Bravo" Eli Barry. Instead of executing it he lands awkwardly on his own ankle. He calls an audible mid match and tells the ref and opponent that they need to finish the match now. A quick roll up pin and Tyler wins. The crowd boos at the finish of the match. Barry asks him what happened and Tyler says he messed up.
As soon as he gets backstage Tyler is berated by Bill, but he keeps walking to his locker, not listening to him. As he reaches his locker Bill puts his hand on his shoulder to turn him around, however, as Tyler turns he throws a punch at Bill. He walks away, with a limp, with Bill yelling out that Tyler is fired. Tyler dumps his title in the trash as he exits the building, all his peers looking on. Limping in the street Tyler heads to a bar, sitting and drinking the night away. He receives phone calls from Bill, Teddy, Logan and Ava, but he answers none of them. Ava ends up sending him a message, which he struggles to read. Ava pleads with him to call and tells him that he should forget everything and just focus on his wrestling career. Tyler laughs and drinks some more.
Hazel now sits on her bed, the empty pill container sits next to her, she has the rest of the pills in her hand, and a glass of water on the bedside table. She stares blankly at the pills. She hears a commotion out the front of her house that pulls her out of her stare. She opens the door to a distraught Tyler. Hazel brings him inside and sits on the couch with him. He places his head in her lap as she strokes his head.
The next morning Hazel is cooking some breakfast for Tyler. Tyler walks into the kitchen and kisses his mother on the head. After he walks away to the dining table, Hazel begins sniffling. Tyler slowly approaches his mother, taking the spatula from her hand and taking her to a seat. “It’s my fault.” Tyler is confused. “I killed Ray” Tyler shakes his head, what does she mean. Hazel is so overcome with guilt that it was her pills. She tells Tyler. Tyler continues repeating, “It’s not your fault” until Hazel breaks down in tears into Tyler’s arms.
Ava stands outside Tyler's apartment, trying to call him to apologize. She knocks on the door, but gets no answer. She gets in her car and during the quick drive over to Hazel's, she reaches Tyler's voicemail twice, leaving him a message asking him to call her back. She admits she went too far and wants to rekindle their relationship. She pulls up in Hazel's driveway and sees Tyler's car. She knocks at the door and tries to look through the windows, but the blinds are closed. Upstairs and over the front the door, Tyler sees Ava's car in the driveway. Hazel tells him she'll take care of her. She barely opens the door, ordering Ava to get off her property. Ava apologizes to Hazel and wants to do the same to Tyler and Hazel says he's not here. They argue a bit and Ava ends up asking her to tell Tyler to call her back. Hazel smiles and tells her she won't make the message and closes the door.
Tyler begins to focus on his WWW tryout. His morning routine of a run, gym and hitting the ring happens every day, leading to the try out. The relationship between Tyler and Hazel has begun to mend with the two of them going out for lunch and talking about themselves, with Tyler talking to his mother explaining his nerves for the tryout. Hazel tells him that Ray would be happy knowing Tyler is following his dream, no matter the circumstance. Tyler smiles, knowing this to be true.
Tyler is in the ring with Teddy Dubois, the two of them training and having a match. Logan Jackson stands on the outside, swapping in with Teddy after a little while. After some training the three of them begin to talk outside the ring about the WWW tryout, Teddy too having a tryout for the big company. Ava walks in the building and stands near the doorway. Tyler sees her and walks on over to her, taking her outside. Ava wants to know why he's been avoiding her lately and he laughs, claiming it's impossible she doesn't understand why. She says she wants to apologizes for her actions, she realised it was wrong, but Tyler says it doesn't matter because he knows she's thinking about it, so that doesn't change anything. Ava tells Tyler she loves him and wants to get back together, but Tyler refuses to commit. Ava gets desperate and Tyler doesn't want her to make a scene. He says he just needs a little time to think and Ava leaves, saying she'll wait for him. She asks him if he'll call back and he tells her that only time will tell if he will.
A couple of days later, Tyler is with Hazel, visiting his brother's grave. Hazel puts down flowers on the tombstone, tears coming down her cheeks. She asks Tyler if he's going to open it and we see a WWW envelope. Tyler, hands shaking, opens the letter. His expression changes and he drops the letter. With tears coming down his eyes, he kneels and apologizes to his brother , he wasn't good enough and he didn't make it. All Ray wanted was to see his little brother in the WWW and he couldn't. He apologizes for disappointing him. Hazel hugs him, asking him what that means for his future, what's next and Tyler says he doesn't know.
