Chapter 1: "The Million Dollar Corporation"
Every wrestling fan in the world has dreamed about being a World Wrestling Federation employee at one point or another in their lives, and Cassidy Winters was no exception. The twenty year old woman had been in-love with the beautiful form of entertainment that is professional wrestling since a young age, and when she aced her try-out and received a contract with the WWF, she had been ecstatic!
Cassidy would be playing the role of Ted DiBiase's niece, a rich, regal young woman by the name of Cassie DiBiase. The story would be that Cassie had followed her uncle's career and spent several years training until she had reached the DiBiase level. Naturally, the two were to be extremely close and Ted would have overseen her training. In kayfabe, Ted would be bringing her into his Million Dollar Corporation to work alongside himself, the 123 Kid, and Sycho Sid.
As Cassidy walked backstage with her purse under her arm, she couldn't shake the feeling of anxiety that washed over her. Although the woman would not be competing or going to the ring on this specific night, she had been called to the arena so that she could meet the three men that she would be working alongside. Due to her very introverted nature, Cassidy hoped for the best, but she expected the worse.
"Hey! What are you doing over there?" The moment that a loud voice boomed by Cassidy's head, she tensed up. The young woman prayed that she wasn't the one that who-ever had been talking to. "Missy! You there! With the lost look in your eyes!"
At that point, Cassidy had to accept that she had been called out. She gripped tightly onto her purse as she turned her head towards everyone's favorite dark-haired, loud mouthed, glasses wearing, manager.
"It's about time you looked at me! Don't you know that when Jim Cornette speaks to you, you need to listen?" Jim shouted before erupting into laughter. "Where in the hell are you going?"
"I'm, uh," Cassidy stuttered, trying to appear as normal and calm as she possibly could, "I'm just looking for Ted DiBiase, really." She took a deep breath and extended a hand towards Jim. "My name is Cassidy Winters, and I'm-"
"Oh!" Jim interrupted Cassidy. He ignored her hand and pointed towards a nearby hallway. "Why didn't you just say so?! He's with Sid and that 123 Kid down on the third room on the right!"
"Thank you." Cassidy felt a wave of relief wash over her. She was quite grateful for the help, but Jim wasn't the least bit interested in talking to her longer than he had to. The only reason he had spoken up in the first place was because Cassidy looked like she had not a single clue what she was doing.
"Yeah, just learn your way around here. Get your head on straight." Though Jim's tone wasn't necessarily harsh, he stomped away from Cassidy and went to continue on his way. Cassidy was confused by Jim's actions, sure, but she wasn't about to try and interrupt him, especially not if she had been a bother to him in the first place.
Cassidy couldn't help but wonder if everyone in the WWF would be as loud and straight-forward as Jim. For her sake, she hoped that the group of men that she would be working alongside were at least a tad bit quieter and a whole lot nicer.
As she approached the room that Jim had pointed out, Cassidy felt a knot form in the bottom of her stomach. She hoped to the heavens that she would make a better first impression on her new partners than she had on Jim.
After taking a deep breath and placing the most bright of smiles upon her lips, Cassidy walked into the open room where Ted, Sean, and Sid sat. At the sound of her footsteps, all three males turned to face her.
"Ah! Are you Cassidy?" Ted was the first to speak. The sound of pure excitement in his voice made Cassidy's heart leap. When she shyly nodded in response, Ted rose to his feet and began making his way over to her. "I was wondering when you'd get here! It's so nice to meet you!"
"It's nice to meet you, too." Much to Cassidy's surprise, a small giggle escaped her lips as she once more placed her hand out in greeting. Unlike Jim, though, Ted was happy to shake her hand.
"Of course, I'm Ted DiBiase." Ted began his introductions. He placed a hand over his chest as he said his name before turning that hand towards the two males who still sat at the table, "But over here, we have Sean and Sid." Ted motioned for the men to stand. "Boys! Introduce yourselves to this sweet young girl."
Sid had no problem rising to his feet and approaching Cassidy. Although the male was leaps and bounds larger than Cassidy - and certainly an opposing foe to stand off against in the ring - he presented an aura of kindness that helped settle her nerves.
"Yeah, I'm Sid Eudy." Sid waved to Cassidy, who smiled back at him. "You seem like a nice girl. Welcome to the Million Dollar Corporation."
"Thank you so much." Even though Cassidy had been extremely worried before stepping into the room, the shy woman felt drastically more relaxed now that she had spoken to Ted and Sid. "I'm very excited to work with you all."
"You'll be the perfect addition to our group." Ted gently patted Cassidy's shoulder and flashed her a smile before turning to where Sean still sat. "Sean? Come over here."
Cassidy then turned her gaze to Sean, who, after a stern glare from Ted, begrudgingly forced himself up from his seat and began walking towards the rest of them. Both Cassidy and Sean stared at one another, trying to read each other to the best of their abilities.
From the moment that Sean had laid eyes on Cassidy, he had a sinking feeling in his gut that the two of them wouldn't get along well. Although she was definitely a cutie, Sean could tell by the way that she dressed and the way that she presented herself that they were of two completely different types of styles.
After all, Cassidy was dressed in a very 'better-than-you' fashion, with her white capris, her dark high heels, and her fluffy, short-sleeved blouse. She was also decked out in jewelry, all of which seemed like it was very expensive.
Did she fit in with Ted? Of course! Would she fill her role the right way? Abso-fuckin'-lutely. But did she seem like someone Sean would get along with?
Not in the slightest.
On the other hand, Cassidy couldn't properly read Sean. His clean-shaven face and floppy, curly hair made him extremely handsome, but Cassidy knew not a single thing about his personality.
However, after the kindness of Ted and Sid, Cassidy had high hopes for Sean. "Hello, Sean." Cassidy spoke softly.
"Hey." Sean replied casually. "What do you sound so shy for? You know we're all cool around here, right?"
Cassidy was instantly taken off-guard, something that both Ted and Sid noticed. Sid shoved Sean's arm as to say, 'What the fuck?'
"What?" Sean whined as he glared up at Sid. "It's a genuine question!"
"Don't pay him any attention." Ted sighed. "He means well."
"I mean, it's not like I'm going to bite." Sean continued, speaking to Cassidy. "Not unless you're into that, that is."
The wink and suggestive wiggle of Sean's eyebrows that followed his teasing remark flustered Cassidy. The poor woman's cheeks flushed as she stared at a smug Sean in utter shock for just a moment before regaining her composure.
"Are you trying to flirt with me?" Cassidy asked in a serious tone. "Or, do you just have a weird way of trying to make friends?"
Admittedly, Cassidy had very little experience when it came to men being even the slightest bit interested in her. For the majority of her life, Cassidy had stuck to the sidelines and out of the range of vision of any male that could want to be with her. She was genuinely clueless as to whether or not Sean was attempting to flirt.
It never crossed her mind that he could possibly just be pulling her leg.
"Is she-" Sean struggled to contain his laughter as he looked between Sid and Ted. "Oh my God, is she actually serious?" When Ted and Sid failed to share his amusement, Sean lost it. He erupted into laughter and fell over, placing his hands on his knees. "Come on, Cassie, you've got to lighten up."
Despite her strongest attempts to act cool, Cassidy couldn't prevent the look of disbelief that came to her face. In just a few sentences, this goofy male had managed to completely break down all faith that Cassidy had in her World Wrestling Federation experience being normal and full of kind, respectable, understand people.
Granted, that had been faith that had been built up only moments earlier, once she met Sid and Ted, but it still hurt. It was as if all of Cassidy's fears had returned in the blink of an eye.
"Please don't tell me how to behave, Sean. You really don't even know the first thing about me, so I'd appreciate it if you didn't act like we've known each other for years." Cassidy's gaze dropped to the floor, making her discomfort obvious.
"Sean, back off." Ted warned the younger male gingerly.
"I just want you to talk to me a little more." Sean huffed as he crossed his arms across his chest. He had a hard time believing that the woman was as shy as she seemed; it seemed far more likely to him that she just didn't want to talk to him.
If Sean had been able to think just a tad bit more clearly, he would've noticed right off the bat that Cassidy had come into the World Wrestling Federation with no prior problem with him. Despite the way that Cassidy appeared, with her expensive-looking fashion and shiny accessories, she was no where near as wealthy as Sean believed.
The biggest problem Sean had was that he automatically assumed that Cassidy would look down upon him, which was as far from the truth as possible. In fact, Cassidy actually thought that Sean thought less of her due to her social skills and her general personality.
The entire thing was just one big misunderstanding.
"I would love to talk to you more, but I'm honestly afraid that you'll just start laughing at me again." Cassidy admitted as her grip on her purse tightened ever-so-slightly.
"What?" Sean instinctively chuckled. "That's dumb! I'm not going to laugh at you for just talking to me!"
"That's what you did just a minute ago." Cassidy pointed out. "I tried to talk to you, and you laughed."
"That's different." Sean insisted. His eyebrows had furrowed; the boy was becoming a bit frustrated by the fact that Cassidy refused to have an actual conversation with him.
"It's really not." Cassidy muttered under her breath.
Before Sean had a chance to reply and make matters worse, Sid placed a hand on his shoulder and asked, "Hey, why don't you come with me to go check on the new gear designs?"
"Huh?" Sean titled his head back as he stared up at Sid in confusion. "I don't-"
"Great idea!" Ted encouraged. He clapped his hands together as Cassidy raised her head up. "While you're at it, go find Jim and Fuj and tell them that I still need to talk to them about your match with Yoko and Owen, okay?"
"But," Sean protested, "I'm trying to-"
Sid pulled Sean in and whispered in his ear, "You're trying to get your ass beat. Just go with it." The taller male then turned to Ted with a smile. "You got it, Boss! We'll take care of that for you."
Sean wanted to protest, but he knew better.
"Thank you, Sid." Ted nodded gratefully. He and Sid exchanged knowing glances, which Cassidy tried her best to figure out.
"It was great to meet you, Cassie! See you soon!" Sid told the woman happily as he exited the room with Sean, whom he drug by the collar of his shirt. As Sean passed by Cassidy, he merely stared at her.
"Likewise, Sid! Thank you." Cassidy truly did appreciate Sid. He seemed like a great guy from what she could tell, and she really looked forward to working with him more.
Ted waited until Sean and Sid were out of earshot before he began talking to Cassidy, who listened carefully to his every word. "Please, don't take anything that Sean says to heart. He's... He's peculiar." Ted struggled to find the perfect word. "I really hope that he didn't bother you too much. I can tell he made you uncomfortable."
The fact that Ted was so understanding and considerate made Cassidy more happy than anything else that day. There was just something about the older male that put her nerves at ease and made Cassidy feel as though everything would be okay.
Cassidy knew that she and Ted would get along very well, and she hoped that their off-screen relationship would be as strong as the bond they were supposed to have in kayfabe.
"I wouldn't say that he made me uncomfortable. It's just that... I really don't know how to talk to him. He is quite peculiar, isn't he?" Cassidy let out a soft giggle as she looked over her shoulder in the direction that Sid and Sean had gone. "I'm sorry." She then apologized, turning back to Ted. "I hope that I don't make a fool of myself and embarrass you or your legacy. I know that being a part of your stable is a very big deal, and I can't thank you enough for working with me."
The pure sincerity that Cassidy displayed caught Ted off-guard. There was something so sweet and innocent about her that worried Ted; this cruel, unforgiving business wouldn't be kind to her, and she was the type of woman that deserved the world.
Let the record show that Ted's interest in young Cassidy was very much like that of an uncle. Based on the formal way that she presented herself, Ted could almost believe that she actually was his niece.
"You're going to do an amazing job, Cassie. Don't put too much pressure on yourself." Ted gave Cassidy a reassuring smile as he slipped his hands into the pockets of his dress pants. "Everyone who saw your audition sung high praises for you." He paused for just a moment before adding, "I just hope that you receive enough opportunities to show your skills in the ring."
From the moment that Cassidy had signed with the WWF, she had known the risks that she would be taking. Over the past year alone, women's wrestling had become less and less of a focus in the company. Cassidy just hoped that it wouldn't completely fade away; women could be quite impressive wrestlers as well!
"Thank you so much for everything, Ted. You're a total sweetheart, you know that?" Cassidy playfully told him.
"I've come a long way from the man I used to be, that's for sure." Ted chuckled. "If you ever need anything at all, please, come to me. Or, go to Sid. He's a little goofy, but he'll help you out if you need him."
"I appreciate that more than I can properly explain." Cassidy giggled before a more serious expression came to her delicate face. "What about Sean?"
Ted's body tensed just a bit at her question, something that Cassidy noticed. "Sean's a good kid, but you'd be better off coming to me and Sid, okay?"
It was obvious that Ted did care for Sean, but it would be a lie to say that Sean didn't worry Ted. Ted tried his best to steer Sean away from the devilish path he was headed down, but, Sean being Sean, he paid the older male very little attention on that matter.
At the end of the day, Ted just wanted the best for all of his friends and co-workers, especially someone as young and talented as Sean.
After Cassidy and Ted finished their conversation, Ted gave Cassidy a quick tour of the backstage arena. Most of the talent that would have given her the time of day was busy, unfortunately, leaving Cassidy to meet some of the more egotistical members of the roster.
There was one group of five that did catch her attention, though Ted quickly moved her past them. Cassidy could only watch from afar as Sean spoke to his friends, undoubtedly complaining about her and her kayfabe uncle.
Once the tour had finished, only one though plagued Cassidy's mind.
It looks like this business really is as crazy as it seems. Bring it on!