"You had some nerve showing up on my pay-per-view last night." Vince greeted me as he opened his office door.
I had been sitting outside Vince's office for a half an hour, waiting for him to see me. John and I flew from Dallas as soon as the show was done. I barely got any sleep because I was so nervous about the meeting. Vince never called last night either. His secretary called me this morning, telling me he wanted to meet with me at 10:30. John couldn't be in the meeting with me though; that was Vince's only request. So John waited for me in the lobby as I faced Vince myself. Looking up at him, he looked angry yet relieved that I had showed up. I stood up as he stood aside to have me walk in his office. I walked in and gasped when I saw Linda, Shane and Stephanie in the office.
All four McMahons were going to decide my fate. This was going to be hell.
Vince closed the door behind me and walked around to the front of the desk. He took a seat next to Linda with Shane and Stephanie on either side of them. I sat down in the chair across from all four of them. I really wished that John was here with me. Right now I was more nervous then ever.
"Well, what do you have to say for yourself Sarah? Disappearing from my company for six months unannounced, breaching your contract and suddenly showing up on my pay-per-view? Did you think it would be that easy to get your job back?" Vince asked harshly.
"Look, I know what I did was wrong…" I started to say before being cut off.
"Damn right what you did was wrong! No one just up and leaves my company without being punished! Not to mention that you had used my money to pay for a hotel room." Vince mentioned, staring me down.
"Vince, don't be so hard on her. Give the girl a chance to speak." Linda told him.
Linda turned to me and smiled. I was a little less nervous knowing that Linda was on my side. I looked at Shane, who wasn't making eye contact with me. Why would he? He was the one that made the proposition to throw me over so John could win. He knew that he had caused all of this.
"I want to hear from Shane first." I spat out.
Shane's head shot up as he glared at me. I was calling him out on what he had done. Stephanie looked a little uneasy, knowing what was coming.
"Excuse me?" Vince asked.
"I want Shane to explain why he made my father the proposition he did at the Royal Rumble." I said.
"It wasn't my idea Sarah. The writers approached me with the idea. They knew it was harsh, but ratings were dropping and they needed something new. I knew it was harsh, but I didn't think John would take it. I thought he would turn it down but when he didn't…I had no choice but to go with it." Shane explained.
"Why would you even give the green light to that Shane? You knew how sensitive of a subject it was!" Stephanie scolded.
"Don't act like you didn't have a part of it either Steph! You're the vice president of creative writing!" Shane yelled.
"VICE president Shane. I don't have the final say on what goes on." Stephanie defended.
"Both of you shut up! This is no time for family feud!" Vince ordered.
Shane and Stephanie became quiet as I looked in my lap. Stephanie knew too? Couldn't she have said something to the writers or stopped the storyline from happening? It seemed like all they cared about was revenue for the business. Vince placed his hand over his forehead and groaned. Linda patted his back as she looked at me.
"We understand the importance of family, dear. But family feuds in this business happen all the time. Look at us. We all were pitted against each other on screen at one time or another. We never intend for it to lead to personal matters. You need to understand that it's just for business purposes." Linda calmly explained to me.
I knew that these things happened all the time. I knew they weren't meant to be personal either. But this became personal. It practically tore John and I apart. Didn't they think that this would have been too sensitive of an issue for me to handle? Vince sighed as he took his hand away from his forehead.
"Bickering aside, what do you have to say for yourself?" Vince asked.
I knew what I wanted to say. I want to apologize a million times over for leaving the company the way I did. I wanted to beg and plead for my job. I had missed being with this company so much when I was gone. I wanted to tell them how good it felt to be back and explain why I didn't come back sooner. I wanted to say all those things, but I didn't know how to say it. I took in a deep breath and did the best I could.
"I don't know how many times I can apologize or beg for my job back. I would sit here and do it for hours if I needed to. And I know what I did was wrong and completely unacceptable. But I need this, Vince. I need this company. When I came in here, I didn't imagine even getting to be on TV. My world was turned upside down when John took me in. If you told me that I would have been a WWE superstar by the age of sixteen I would have laughed in your face. But this has become my life. I gave up on something I have loved for so long and it killed me. It killed me to be away from all of this. But mostly, it killed me to be away from the WWE family. Everyone has always been generous and I never felt more at home then I do in that ring. This is my home, and these wrestlers are my family. Please, don't take that away from me." I poured out.
There. I had said all that I needed to say. I sat there while the room filled with silence. Vince closed his eyes and sighed. Did he accept my apology? Or was he going to kick me out once and for all?
"You know Sarah…I never had a star walk out on me like that. I felt insulted to be left in a letter. I was mad and angry with you and John. But…I consider you my daughter. And, as you know, I'd do anything for you. Plus you created great revenue for us over the years. And your little stint last night? Ratings through the roof. Things weren't the same without you around here so…" Vince trailed off.
Vince picked up a manila folder from his lap and set it on the table. He opened it up and took a pen from his pocket. He slid a stack of papers across the table. My heart skipped a beat when I read the bold letters I had missed.
OFFICIAL WORLD WRESTLING ENTERTAINMENT EMPLOYMENT CONTRACT.
I couldn't help but squeal when I saw the contract. He was letting me back in! I could be a wrestler again! Stephanie laughed and stood up to give me a hug. I jumped up and gave her a huge hug. Se let me go and flashed me a huge smile. Tears started to fall down my cheeks. I couldn't believe I was signed again!
"Is she signed?" John asked bursting through the door.
"CENA!" Vince yelled.
"I'm sorry Vince, but I've been listening for a while and I need to know if she can come back. I mean I don't mean to intrude but if she can't be signed I don't know what to do…" John was saying before Vince cut him off.
"Stop talking Cena. She's going to be signed once she signs her new contract." He told him.
I turned around to find myself in John's arms. I wrapped my arms around him and started to cry. I was so happy. Things finally fell into place. John kissed the top of my forehead as he sat down in my chair. I sat in his lap as I grabbed the pen and contract.
"Now your new contract isn't as good as your old one. You did something unacceptable, so you're not getting off easy. You're starting off with a lower pay but after a couple months, we'll raise it and see how things go. You get transportation service, all the basics, promotional services and you are required to do WWE approved signings, appearances and promotions five days a week. No title shots for at least a year, and you will start off as your father's valet for three months. You are required to go down to our developmental unit to re-train since you haven't done anything for six months. No merchandise for five months, then we will discuss what we will sell of yours. Any questions?" Vince asked.
"When am I back on TV?" I asked.
"Tonight, if you sign that contract." Vince said.
I flipped through the pages, signing where I needed to. The contact kept me inside a very strict set of rules, but that's what you get when you leave like I did. I was excited for training because I never had the proper training. I knew I would be busy for the next year, but it was something I was looking forward to.
"Wait a second. What about school? She's going to start her senior year this year." John pointed out.
School. I had totally forgot about going to school. I forgot about Britt, Ashley, Cassy, Matt and all my friends back home. What was I going to do? I couldn't go back to Roseville. There was no way I'd be able to go back after what happened. Would I even have time to fly home between events and appearances?
"We can sign her up for an online high school so she can graduate. College though, that will be her choice. Are you thinking about college?" Vince asked.
"I haven't thought about school in a while." I told him.
"We'll start looking into them and the possibility of doing hybrid classes. I want you to get a god education and have the college experience." John told me.
"When you find out about that, let us know and we will work around it." Linda decided.
I signed the last page of the contract and pushed it back to Vince. Shane took it put the stamp of approval and put it back in the envelope. Vince looked at me and smiled.
"Welcome back Sarah Cena." Vince said, saying the words I had longed to hear.
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Well, she's back! I'm so happy for her! I'm sure you are too! Let me know how much you loved it by leaving a review!
Next chapter (THE LAST CHAPTER.): Fast forward three years to previous time. We catch up with Sarah and see how far she has gone in the WWE. Keep on the look out for the last chapter!
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