The next day was hectic, more than Sevina could have anticipated. She hadn't expect everything to be so rushed. She was herded first to another meet and greet and then to the arena to finalise her entrance. She was shown where she was allowed to be and where she wasn't. She received several warnings of when not to enter the ring and not to interfere. She was given certain safety instructions and what to do in the event that she found herself somewhere that she shouldn't be. She'd heard it all a thousand times before, but found herself listening intently, simply because it took her mind off the nervousness she was feeling. She could hardly believe that she was going to do it. In twenty-four hours she was going to be at WrestleMania.
Matt and Jeff were at the arena with her, as were Glen and Mark, going through their entrances and setting up some of the finer details of the match, preparing for the particularly difficult or risky parts. Sevina tried not to listen to them. Partly because she wanted to enjoy the match, not just as a participant, but as a fan, but also because it worried her. She heard Jeff mention a leapfrog over one of the twenty foot ladders and it sent a shudder down her spine. She knew what could happen is anything went wrong, she knew how dangerous it was and it scared her. Four people she cared a great deal for, where going to be putting their bodies and their careers on the line for the sake of making it a match to remember.
She nodded as her safety advisor finally finished his speech. She confirmed that she had been listening by answering a few questions, then she rolled into the ring. She just sat in the centre of the canvas, wrapping her arms loosely around her legs as she looked around. She felt a strange sense of calm come over her. This was it. This was what all her years of work had been leading up to. She'd made it. She'd done the things she set out to do and she felt proud. However the match ended, whatever happened, she would always have this memory of being part of something amazing.
She let her breath out slowly and tilted her head back, closing her eyes. Even now, with no fans, the arena felt electrified, as if it too, were anticipating the arrival of greatness the following day. It was a bizarre atmosphere, like everything was suspended in time, just waiting. Time was dragging far too slowly and Sevina couldn't wait. She wanted it to be here now, but at the same time she wanted to savour the moment. She wanted to enjoy the build up, knowing that there was only one 'first time'. She wanted to remember each second of it.
She was dragged from her thoughts by Matt's voice from the outside of the ring. "Vina, we gotta go over to creative." She opened her eyes and looked at him, then nodded and slid out of the ring. They had to go and finalise script for the show. They were being given a lot of freedom with what they wanted to say and do, but they had to follow a certain skeleton and make sure things ended up where they were supposed to be. Once they'd been to the creative department, they went straight to wardrobe and styling. Sevina picked out her outfit, taking her time, wanting it to be just right. She then sat in the chair and let the stylists work over her. She made occasional points, refusing extremely heavy make-up, but saying 'yes' to one thing that she thought would be a surprise for Matt and Jeff. She was patient as the make-up artists tried several different looks for her. She turned most of them down and utterly refused to put on fake tan.
Sevina didn't like to cover herself in cosmetics, she was what she was and she might not have been perfect but she didn't want to cover it up with tonnes of paste and colour. She didn't want to promote that image. Maria joined her, sitting in the chair next to hers, doing almost the exact opposite as Sevina. She was very specific about what she wanted and what she didn't. She flipped through the books, picking out a shade of tan, eye shadow, lip gloss and everything else she wanted. It was clear that she was used to this. Maria wasn't in a match, she was appearing in a backstage segment with a group of other divas.
Sevina was finally let go after two hours and she went straight to the gym in the hotel. She needed to blow off some steam. She was getting really nervous now. She took her ipod and turned it up loud as she took to the treadmill. She let the exercise and the music take everything away. She tried not to think of the next day, because every time she did, she felt like she might be sick. The pressure was high and she wasn't sure if her mind was ready to deal with the weight of her self doubt and excitement just yet.
It was quite late by the time she decided to quit for the night and the gym had emptied of any other people. Sevina pulled her earphones out and looked around. The only remaining monitor was stood by the door, looking bored. She felt a little guilty for making him stay so late. She apologised and then went to grab a shower. She continued to force her thoughts to the back of her mind as she pulled on her jeans and t-shirt. She glanced at the time and decided to go and see if anyone else was around. She checked the bar and the lounge, but everyone seemed to have gotten an early night. Well, not surprising really. WrestleMania was tomorrow.
Just like that she wasn't able to hold it in anymore. She was stood in the lobby as it built up and she let out a squeal and jumped up and down for a few moments before running up the stairs. She ignored the strange looks she received and then burst into her room. She fell on the bed and wriggled out of her clothes, puling the blankets over her, though she didn't really need them. It was already warm enough here. As she lay there, she relaxed and let it hit her. All the excitement and the nerves, the anticipation. She acknowledged the worry that she would go out there and stink the place out and make a complete fool of herself and the slight sadness that she couldn't be sat in Jeff's room right now, talking to him and Matt about her worries.
Above anything else, she was aware of the sheer overwhelming pride and that sense of not being able to wait. She felt like a child on Christmas Eve. She wanted to go now and just wait in the arena. She knew she wouldn't sleep, but she tried. She closed her eyes, but all she could see were images of possibilities. What might happen the following day. She tossed and turned, throwing her blankets off, only to drag them back a few minutes later.
She finally gave up, climbing out of bed and pulling on a pair of sweat pants and a baggy t-shirt. She shoved her feet into her boots and headed down to the bar to get a hot drink. She was surprised to find Jeff and Matt sat at a table, talking quietly. Sevina ordered herself a hot chocolate and then went over to them. "Hey. Can I join you?" They both nodded and she sat down. Matt looked at her sympathetically. "Can't sleep?" Sevina shook her head. "Not even close." Matt laughed. He had the same problem, as did Jeff. They always had trouble sleeping before WrestleMania, whether they were competing in it or not.
The three of them talked for a while. Well, Matt and Jeff talked, or Sevina and Matt talked. Mostly they talked about the following day, none of them seemed able to stray far from the subject. It was almost therapeutic, being able to talk about it, let the insane excitement out. It was unsurprising that it didn't remain just the three of them for long as one by one the other superstars joined them, all of them unable to sleep. It was the early hours of the morning before they decided that they really should go and try to get some sleep. Sevina left first, waving as she went.
She got back into bed and still didn't feel tired, but she knew she needed to rest. She may not be wrestling, but the pressure of the situation would be hard to handle if she was tired. She pulled her ipod out and put it on. She closed her eyes and sank into the music, trying to make her mind rest. Telling herself that there was no point worrying about it now, it would only make time go slower. Her mind didn't really listen, but she felt better for at least trying. At some point she did fall asleep, but she had no memory of even feeling tired.