Chapter 2
"Ummm, hi." I say sheepishly. "Hey…you okay? Car break down?" She asks before nervously laughing, "or are you sleeping here?" I can tell she is joking but I blush madly, looking down at the blanket in my lap. "Well, that explains a lot." She says, and before I know it she is inviting me to stay on her couch. I'm totally taken aback. Ravyn and I haven't particularly gotten along since I got to Canada, with us being the only two girls there had been an obvious rivalry between us to be better than the other in our training.
Embarrassed beyond belief I agree to accept her charitable offer and follow her to her apartment. She stops to get us some food on the way and before I know it we are in her apartment nibbling silently on French fries, an awkward tension between us. After we eat she shows me where I can clean up in the apartments single small bathroom. I shower, allowing the lukewarm water to try and soothe my nerves and try to get a grasp on what I would do next. I slip back out to the couch after the water runs cold, sitting at one end, my feet tucked underneath me, wet hair hanging down around my shoulders. Ravyn comes out of the kitchen with two steaming mugs in her hands. She hands me one of the mugs. I take a sip of the rich chocolatey liquid, but soon cough at a strong after taste. Ravyn chuckles, "there, isn't that better?" I cough once more before taking another sipping, enjoying the spiked hot chocolate more this time before knowing what to expect. I set the mug next to me on the end table. "So, all the way from the Midwest huh? Why here?" she inquires. "I heard Lance had one of the best schools. Plus, he has ties to the WWE which I'm hoping will be helpful later…and honestly…I just needed to get away." I admit reaching for a hair tie out of my bag and pulling my wet hair up into a messy bun on top of my head. "Well, if you're trying to run away Calgary is a great place for that. Things not so good in Kansas?" She asks gently. I laugh nervously, "that's putting it mildly." She backs off her questions. "Well, you're welcome to stay here. The couch is yours for crashing and if you want to talk, I'm here."
Tears immediately spring to my eyes and I hastily wipe them away. "I'm sorry I'm not usually like this." I say laughing with embarrassment. I compose myself, sniffing, deciding that if she is going to trust me enough to let met stay in her home that I can trust her with my story. "I've uh…" I stop to clear my throat. "I was in the foster care system for eight years. Bouncing around from place to place and depending on complete strangers to take care of me isn't a new thing…but you are the first person to take in my because you wanted to…not because you had to." I say, attempting to express my gratitude, more tears silently sliding down my cheek as Ravyn hands me a tissue. "Don't let where you come from define you, and like I said, if you need anything I'm here." I dab at my eyes with the tissue. "I was just really hoping to finally be able to stand on my own two feet, but it only took me one week to fail at that and I was forced to live in my car for two weeks." I can't help but laugh. "I guess I lose at the adulting game." Ravyn smiles reassuringly at me, "you just drove across the country with nothing but what you had in your car. You're taking a chance on a dream. Fortune favors the bold. Don't let it go to waste, we'll get you a work visa and then you'll be able to make some money. So what? You stumbled. It happens. Now we're going to work our asses off and make sure people all over the world will now who we are and where we come from." A genuine smile crosses my face at her words. "Did we just become friends?" I joke and she smiles back, "yup." We laughing, clinking our mugs and continue to talk late into the night.
I wake up having gotten the best nights sleep I had since arriving in Canada curled up on Ravyn's couch. We happen to have an off day so Ravyn takes me straight to get my work visa and we spend the afternoon job hunting. It takes some time but we luckily find a part time job in a small shop that is willing to work with my training schedule at Lance's school.
We finish off our training course at Lance's and both graduate. We stay on at the school to continue training as we begin dipping our toes into the local indy scene. After a few months we start getting some regular bookings with a few of the smaller promotions in the area, then by the end of our first year we had put in enough work to have earned the reputation of being good workers and started branching out to bigger promotions and soon we are traveling all over Canada and parts of the US. My second winter in Canada takes me on my first Canadian Death Tour. I have never been so scared in my entire life I was in that moment as the van cruised across the frozen lake, I was convinced that at any minute the ice would crack and we would go crashing into the ice cold water.
Time passes and the Death Tours become old habit. After a particularly chilly tour Ravyn and I stumble through the doors of SWA, exhausted and still trying to thaw out. The van drops us off at the school and we stumble through the doors exhausted. We can see Lance on the phone in his office, he waves us over when he sees us through the window. We quietly open the door to hear him saying his goodbyes as we enter, taking seats across from his desk just as he hangs up the phone. He looks us over with a slight smirk, "so, you survived another tour. How are you feeling?" I stifle a yawn behind my hand, "I'm still trying to thaw out." I admit as Ravyn just groans. "Well then I have some good news. How would you girls like to go to sunny Orlando Florida?" Ravyn and I exchange a glance. "Well, that's definitely warmer than hear. What's the promotion?" Ravyn asks, "so, it's not an indy book. It's a tryout." Lance informs us and I snort. "What is Disney World putting on wrestling shows now?" I joke as Lance grins. "Not quite. Have you heard of FCW?" He questions, knowing full well we know the name, and what it represents, "the developmental program for WWE?!" I ask freaking out.
Both Lance and Ravyn chuckle at my outburst before Lance goes on to explain that WWE reached out to rebrand FCW and is looking for new talent to fill their roster. "I may have thrown your names their way." He finishes. "You did not." I say in disbelief. "You mean…we are going to a WWE tryout?" Ravyn askes completely stunned. "That's exactly what I mean." Lance confirms. "Now it won't be fun. It's four days of intense training, and then they'll take a couple of weeks to decide if they want to sign you or not." He warns us. "I…uh…wow." I stammer, lost for words. "When do we go?" Ravyn asks. We will be leaving in two weeks, Lance informs us. He says that he will call in a favor with WWE to get our travel expenses covered. "Until then, I expect you guys here every day. You're representing me and my school when you are down there." He emphasizes and I nod. "We'll do our best to make you proud Lance." I say hoping to live up to those words. "I know you tow won't let me down. now get out of here, I have work to do."
We scamper out of his office nearly tripping over each other as we grab our bags and run to the locker room. Once the door closes behind us we allow ourselves to completely freak out. "Holy shit! Can you believe this!?" Ravyn asks me grabbing my shoulders. "I want to scream right now! That really just happened right? I' not delusional, still frozen in a van on the tour?" I ask, not sure what to believe. "We're actually going to Florida in two weeks to try out for the WW fucking E!" I all but scream clapping my hand giddily as Ravyn and I both start jumping around squealing like maniacs.
We bust our asses over the next two weeks leading into the tryout and before either of us is ready we are on a plane to Florida. We pick up our rental car and head to our hotel close to where our tryouts will take place. We hit the hotel gym wanting to get in one final work out before we grab some food and head to bed early. I'm too nervous to get much sleep so I'm already up when the alarm goes off. We change into our workout gear and head to the dilapidated warehouse that currently houses FCW. The trainers lecture us on what to expect over the next few days. My eyes wander, scanning the room full of my fellow hopeful tryout participants there are about 15 men and only three other women plus the two of us. When the lecturing ends, we go through some intense stretching drills and just like my first day in Calgary we go on a grueling run. Before we can make it back to the warehouse three men, and one of the women have quit the tryouts. We get a brief five minute water break before the real work begins. We are split into two groups, there is only one ring in the warehouse so while one group works in the ring the rest of us do cardio drills outside the ring. My limbs are on fire when my group rotates into the ring. I attempt to psych myself up telling myself that I've been working my too hard to make it to this moment only to fuck it up.
They release us around dinner time and after a quick shower and a change of clothes Ravyn and I drag ourselves out of the warehouse, stop for some food on our way back the hotel and drag ourselves up to our room. I set my good down and collapse onto the bed. "I'm too sore to even eat." I grumble, not wanting to move. I hear the other bed creak as Ravyn sinks down on it. "Tell me about it, and we still have three ore days of this so we probably should eat something to keep our strength up." She says wisely and I groan, rolling over with a wince and sitting back up. We eat quickly and pass out.
The next two days of training are just as bad as the first. On the fourth and final day those of us who haven't dropped out are paired up to put on a match. I'm relieved when Ravyn and I are paired together because I know that with our experience together, we will make the other shine. I enter the ring with shaking hands, my nerves getting the better of me until the moment we lock up. We put on a flawless match each showcasing our in ring strengths until they call for us to stop. We climb out of the ring sharing a grin with each other sharing a grin with each other knowing we just gave it our all.
Exhausted we head back to Calgary to anxiously await WWE's decision. A week passes by and then another. Soon, I have lost all faith in hearing from them as an entire month has soon passed. Since the tryout we've continued to train at Lance's and work the territories of Canada. News starts to filter out about FCW being rebranded as NXT and the incredible state of the art facility that has been built to house it. I try to not be discouraged by their silence, but it's hard to not be negative. After another couple weeks with no word I have finally lost all faith hand resign myself that I will never work for WWE. Then out of the blue while Ravyn and I are driving to Edmonton for a show Lance calls us. I put the call on speaker at his request. He tells us WWE finally called back and that they want us both in Florida in two months. We both scream, freaking out. Our show that night is the best we have ever had, adrenaline running through our veins at the news we received earlier that day.
Lance helps us find an affordable one bedroom apartment close to the NXT Performance Center and soon we pack up our eager belongings, fit shove them all in Ravyn's car, my car only lasted about a year after my move to Canada before biting the dust.
It takes us four days to drive from Calgary to Orlando and we are completely spent as we check in at the apartment complex office to get keys and directions to our unit. We are lucky to a have a bottom floor apartment so moving in is easy. We spend the rest of the afternoon buying cheap furniture off Craig's List. We can only find one decent looking and affordable bed so I volunteer to sleep on the couch we bought until something becomes available. I'd spent the last few years sleeping on a couch a few more weeks wouldn't kill me. We splurge on paying extra to have the furniture delivered to us, too exhausted to attempt it ourselves.
Our first weekend in Florida is spent turning the apartment into home. We hang pictures from our time in Canada, cook our first meal, with potatoes as a side dish of course and get ourselves ready to begin the next chapter of our wrestling careers on Monday when we are due at the Performance Center. I'm more nervous than I was for the tryouts as we walk through the front doors for the first time. We are greeted by the receptionist and begin filling out all our necessary paperwork and get introduced to one of the head trainers Sara Amato. She shows us to the women's locker room where we find two lockers side by side with our names written on tape. I place my bag in the locker and sit down on the bench. I allow my mind a minute to wander and imagine what my future will bring if I manage to make my stint in WWE successful. Am I really about to make my dreams come true? I smile, letting out a nervous breath before changing into my workout gear complete with a 'Property of WWE Performance Center' tee.
