Sorry for the long delay but finally I finished my chapter for this, and I hope you enjoy it!
"Maryse hurry up! Kelly just sent me a text telling me the weather is nasty out. By the time we get out there, the time you're spending on your appearance is going to be wasted!" Mickie James shouted across the divas locker room.
"Calm your hormones feisty, I can't go anywhere unless I look fabulous. It shouldn't matter the weather, Maryse looks great rain or shine," the French-Canadian responded as she stepped out of the powder room.
Before Mickie could respond a loud boom echoed in the locker room, causing both women to jump and glance at one another questioningly.
"What the hell was that?" Maryse shrieked.
"I believe that's called a storm," the brunette remarked sarcastically.
"Why thank you captain obvious," her blonde companion responded, resisting the urge to roll her eyes. Normally she thought Mickie's attitude was cute, but not when it was directed at her. "Let's get out of this creepy place. Are we like the last ones here or something?"
Mickie glanced around the locker room, "No as you can see there's still a few bags left, I just don't know where their owners disappeared to. I know for sure Kelly left because she texted me and told me to be careful, but I'm not too sure about anyone else."
"Let's get going," Maryse suggested, pulling on her jacket and shouldering her bag before leading the way towards the door. Mickie hurried to pull on her on her own jacket and retrieve her tote before following her best friend out into the corridor.
"Well this is creepy, there's no one else here," the blonde said, the empty building and the lack of people making her slightly uncomfortable. "This is how horror movies start."
"No that's how horror movies start. The main character always states the obvious before she dies," Mickie teased.
"Ooh you think I'd be the main character?" Maryse asked excitedly.
"It's so weird that that's the part of my statement that you respond to," Mickie said, shaking her head. "Besides we aren't alone, look there's a few crew members. And anyway the place is huge, there are probably some of the guys left in their locker rooms and the ladies wandering around doing god knows what."
"Well I'm not waiting around to find out!" her companion responded, picking up the pace towards the direction of the exit.
Mickie emitted a slight giggle, "Maybe you shouldn't have taken so long to get ready." She loved teasing Maryse when she was nervous, the French-Canadian got so riled up because of her high maintenance tendencies.
"Mickie James you really have got to stop complaining about how long it takes me to get ready. You aren't any better. Now put a cork in it I am so not in the mood, I hate thunderstorms, they terrify me!"
The brunette laughed once more, "I know you do. And I think it's funny," she smiled as they approached the exit.
Both women placed their hands on the double doors and pushed simultaneously but the doors only opened about an inch before coming to a stop. Mickie glanced down, and reached out to grasp the chain in her hand that shackled the handles on the door together.
"What the hell is going on?" Maryse said, perhaps a little too loudly.
"Obiously they locked these doors already. I mean we are in here later than usual," Mickie responded, dropping her bag to the floor and turning to face her friend.
"Yeah but since when do they chain the doors locked?" the blonde said, shoving the door a little aggressively. "Mickie, this is the way we came in."
"Okay just stay calm. These aren't the only doors in this place," Mickie responded, chuckling lightly.
"Yeah but why are the doors chained shut? This isn't normal," the blonde said defensively. "I am not traipsing around the entire arena to get to our car. It's raining out!"
"Maybe it's to keep people out? I'm sure a place of this size and importance attracts a lot of freaky people. Come on let's see if we can find those crew members from earlier or some of the guys. Like I said, we can't be the last ones here. Do you hear that?" She asked, placing her ear against the door.
Maryse followed her action, leaning forwards, "Wow, that sounds like an intense storm."
"I think that's an understatement. Look..." the brunette pointed to the floor where a puddle of water was seeping in under the crack at the bottom of the door, "It's really raining out there."
Before either could do anything more, everything around them went dark, and neither could see the other.
"Mickie!" Maryse screamed.
"Yeah I'm here 'Ryse," she reached out in the dark to feel for her best friend and grasped her hand.
"What were you saying about looking? Because I think that might be a problem."
"Thanks for that stroke of genius," Mickie rolled her eyes and then realized the action was wasted.
"Do you have a flashlight?" the Canadian asked hopefully, clinging tightly to her best friend.
"Yeah, I always carry one in my back pocket."
"Unless it's to say something useful how about you keep your mouth shut."
"Ooh touchy, is someone scared?" the brunette teased trying to keep the situation light because she knew how terrified her friend really was of thunderstorms. "Come on, let's try to find the others. We'll check out the other exits too."
"God I hope Ted is still here," Maryse said, fishing her phone out of her pocket, "Not that I'll know because I don't have any reception!" she groaned as she realized she had no bars. "How is that possible, I've used my phone various times tonight. There must be a block here."
"But this is good," Mickie said, bending down to dig through her bag on the floor. "Our cell phones can act as light so we don't kill ourselves by stumbling around in the dark."
"Good plan, and here I thought I was the beauty and the brains. Oh wait, I am," Maryse said arrogantly.
"Maryse, I'm not scared of the dark. If you piss me off enough, I'll steal your phone and leave you alone in the dark."
"You wouldn't dare."
"Wouldn't I?" Mickie challenged, knowing deep down she would never leave her friend feeling so vulnerable but it was fun to tease. Mickie felt as if she was a mother figure to Maryse, always looking out for her best interests. The two were co-dependent on one another, always there to pick up the pieces when life hurled a dilemma the others way.
"So you uptight bitch, lead the way why don't you?"
Mickie laughed, "You are really pushing my buttons today, you're lucky I love you as much as I do. Come on, let's head in the direction of the locker rooms and hope we run into someone else."
"So how many other exits are there?"
"I don't know. I imagine that isn't the only one backstage. And if it is, there's always the public entrances as well."
"Mickie... isn't it weird that we don't hear anyone else?" Maryse asked, a tiny hint of uneasiness detected in her tone.
"Maryse, it's just a building. We'll be fine. Besides we passed those guys back there... they could have left already or they could be wandering around aimlessly too. We could call out if you like, maybe bring them to us."
"No!" Maryse half-shouted, "I mean... let's just be quiet," she said softly.
Mickie giggled again, "Okay whatever you want. So what is going on with you and Ted anyway?"
"We're just hanging around. We've been on a few dates but I'm not sure if he wants to be monogamous. And I certainly am not taking the first step. The last time I did, things did not end well and I really think there could be something between Ted and I."
Mickie nodded her head in agreement, "You two do seem to work well together and you would have some pretty damn good looking babies," she grinned and there was silence for a moment as Maryse envisioned the idea, "Come on," she pulled the blonde in the direction they had come from only minutes prior.
They walked for a few minutes more, finally entering the corridor that housed the locker rooms, using what little light they could get from their cell phones as a means to stumble down the hallway without the risk of accidents. Neither one spoke, the fact that they hadn't run into anyone yet settling into both of them, making them nervous although neither one wanted to admit it. They finally found the divas locker room and pulled open the door and stepped inside, trying to turn on the light mostly out of force of habit but also wishful thinking.
"No one," Maryse stated, holding the phone up so she could survey her friends face.
Mickie released a sigh, "Okay well..." she ran her free hand through her hair, "Check the bags to see who they belong to. At least we'll know who is still left in the building."
"Another great idea... you are truly surprising me today!" Maryse mocked.
"I hope you fall down a flight of stairs," Mickie grumbled, rushing forward to the nearest bag.
"Oh that's mature. Either way I'd still look hot in a body cast," Maryse grinned before realizing Mickie wasn't even paying attention anymore. She also advanced so that she could search the other bags.
"Well I believe this one belongs to Nattie, which I'm sure means one of those belongs to Beth," the brunette announced, turning to face her companion.
"Yes, this one here is Beth's, she left her wallet in here. Not very smart of her," Maryse said judgmentally.
"What about the others?"
"It doesn't matter. I'm sure they're all probably together. So what now?"
"I don't know. Do you think we should go looking for them or should we just wait here and see if they come back?" Mickie suggested.
"Okay I cannot stay in here another second. It's too creepy. I'd feel much safer if we were with a bigger group of people."
"Oh god Maryse, would you stop saying things like that? You're starting to freak me out. Let's go," she stomped forward and grabbed the French-Canadian's bag, placing it next to her own on one of the benches before grabbing her hand and pulling her to the door aggressively. "There's a storm and it caused the power to go out. Nothing more, nothing less. You are just looking for something that isn't there," she said, pulling the door open so they could step out into the corridor. "Anyway where do you think we should look? I think it would take forever to search all the locker rooms."
"If I was a bunch of superstars who just finished an event where would I go if I got trapped in an arena?" Maryse asked.
"Catering," they both spoke simultaneously.
"Speaking of Ted, who has my dear Mickie got her eyes on these days?" Maryse asked, trying to change the subject to keep them distracted.
"Maryse, I never kiss and tell," Mickie said coyly.
"Mickie, you've been missing the last few weeks that we've gone out."
"So I've been relaxing in my hotel room. In case you haven't realized I'm older than most of you, not everything is about going out to the hottest clubs."
The blonde opened her mouth to respond but both women stopped dead in their tracks when they heard a loud banging sound coming from the darkness behind them. The both of them jumped suddenly, grasping one another more tightly.
"Mickie..." Maryse breathed out, holding her phone out, but the light only reached so far.
"Hello?" Mickie croaked, clearing her throat before speaking again, "Who's there?" No response came, so she grasped the blonde's hand more tightly and pulled her down the direction they had been heading previously, away from the startling sound. "Come on, let's keep heading to catering. I'm pretty sure we're going the right way."
"Mickie are you scared?" Maryse whispered, her vulnerability shining through fully for the first time this evening.
"No," Mickie spoke confidently, "It must have been from the storm. It's nothing to be worried about. You'll see," she finished, sounding much more confident than she was feeling.
There was no way the storm could have made that noise, as it came from the end of the hall, but it made her wonder just what it was. In fact, she didn't want to think about what it could have been, but it just kept clawing at her brain. What the hell was going on? The exit was chained shut, the power was out and now they were hearing weird noises. Only one of those three could really be the result of the storm. So once again, what the hell was going on?
"Okay this sign says catering is just down the hall," Mickie announced, using the light from her flashlight to read the sign posted on the wall.
"Oh god I hope someone we know is in there. I don't care if you judge me, I'm terrified!" the blonde exclaimed in a harsh whisper.
"Like I said it's going to be-" but Mickie stopped speaking instantly when the noise from before started again, but this time it was much, much closer.
It was as if someone had a metal pole and was scraping it along the concrete wall and every few seconds stopping to bang it across the wall, before continuing to drag it across the wall once again.
"Mickie!" Maryse shrieked.
The brunette looked back in the direction she knew the noise was coming from, but she couldn't see anything. She drew herself up against the wall, her heart beating faster and faster with every waking second. Finally she realized just how much she was shaking and had to take a few deep breaths to calm her nerves.
"Mickie let's go!" Maryse screamed, trying to pull her companion towards their destination.
But Mickie wouldn't budge. She couldn't move. It was as if she was glued to the spot, just awaiting what was going to happen next. She heard Maryse scream her name once more and attempt to pull her again, but it all seemed so distant as she continued to peer into the darkness, willing whoever was there to reveal themselves. But all of a sudden a new sensation came over her. The feeling of fear. She couldn't explain how or why but she knew that the both of them should be afraid. Something was coming. Those chains weren't on the door innocently nor was it the storm that had knocked the power out. How she knew that, she couldn't explain... but she felt it confidently with every fibre of her being. Something terrible was going to happen tonight, and she wasn't sure what it was, but she knew they couldn't avoid it.
"Mickie!" Maryse's screams brought her back to reality and instantly she realized just how close the noise was getting. "Mickie we have to go!"
"Maryse run!" Mickie yelled, giving the blonde a little shove but making sure she didn't let go of her hand as they both rushed down the hall.
But they weren't the only one's in that hallway, and she knew it and whoever else was out there knew it. To Mickie's immediate terror she realized that not only had the noise increased, but it was gaining on them.
"Maryse faster!" Mickie shrieked, letting go of her friends hand so they could run less awkwardly.
Mickie reached the doors first and shoved them open. Running into the dark room blindly she stumbled over an object in the room and toppled to the ground, whacking her head roughly on the concrete floor. She grasped her throbbing head, and reached out blindly trying to find her phone that she had heard hit the floor when she stumbled. Unfortunately the back light had switched off and she had no way of seeing where it was.
"Maryse!" Mickie spoke loudly, "Maryse where are you?"
The brunette stumbled to her feet, reaching out to realize it had been a chair that had caused her accident.
"Maryse!" she yelled again.
It was in that moment that she realized she couldn't hear the blood curdling noise anymore, but she also had no idea where the blonde was. A feeling of guilt washed over her as she couldn't even be sure her friend had made it into the room. She had merely been concentrating on her own running that she hadn't made sure that Maryse was even behind her.
"Maryse..." Mickie whispered, a feeling of dread washing over her.
She let out a piercing scream when a pair of arms, that were much longer and more muscular than Maryse's, closed around her body. She was no longer worried about her friend... because she was the one who was in trouble now.
Okay I want to apologize for taking so long to update. I am so nervous about this and I truly hope you weren't disappointed! It took me forever to come up with an idea and I think this one will be fun for any of you who are planning to write a chapter in this round robin. I know one of the rules was that characters can't be killed off, but I already discussed it with Claire and she thinks it could be a really good 'Who done it?' type of story. I left it open so any superstars or divas can be brought into the mix... so bring in whoever you want :) the more the merrier! So let me know what you think, and I am so excited for the next chapter!
Speaking of I nominate XxFutureWWEDivaxX to write the next chapter :)