New York City Friends

Season 3, Episode 7: Stay True

Starring~ Michelle McCool, Ashley Massaro, Candice Michelle, and Torrie Wilson.


Staying true to oneself is hard when the world doesn't believe in you.

It was another restless Thursday night in the City- nothing stopped, not even for a second. Cabs and cars honking with their headlights on, people rushing to get home and some rushing to get to work, others rushing for the nightlife and the stupid fun.

The skyline stood tall and bright, but Torrie unfortunately didn't after her publisher called her that night to tell her that she should wait a few more years before she publishes her first book. Torrie fell to her bed and she cried.

Within a few days she had told everybody she knew that she was officially a published author and that her book would be in every stand, she envisioned every little part of releasing that first book. The book she had been working on for years was rejected within a few days after consideration.

Torrie eventually fell asleep. She slept with her makeup on, she slept with her jeans and t-shirt on, she left the window of her room open, and she didn't even bother to cover herself with a blanket.


Up the City and away from the Lower East side, in the Park Avenue area, Candice was on her feet shopping for a new pair of shoes.

Candice preferred to shop in the nights- according to her, she loved the smell of the perfumes all clashing and she loved the pretty lights that made everything seem that much more glamorous. Candice loved her little night-time shopping tradition and she wasn't going to change that.

She went through the shoes, going back and forth between four pairs of shoes. She finally went with the peep-toe Louis Vuitton beige heels, after about forty minutes that is. Candice was happy to have the last pair of those heels and she carried on with going through the racks of Nordstrom.

It was all 'just shopping', until her credit card told her it was a serious problem. "Mam, your card was declined," the cashier notified Candice. Candice didn't know what to do or say, so she tried arguing. "Try again, maybe it's a glitch," Candice insisted as she began putting the heels into the bag.

The cashier got on the phone with Candice's bank after Candice kept on nagging that it was a 'glitch'. The cashier picked up some scissors and she cut the credit card in half, "They told me to do that," she informed Candice.

Her credit card was the only thing stopping her and forcing her to change.

A man behind Candice overheard and stepped in kindly."I can pay for her purchase," the man claimed. Candice would have said 'no' if there were more people to judge her, but the line was almost empty and the cashier couldn't possibly judge her anymore than she already was.

"That would be wonderful, an act of kindness really," Candice thanked him. He popped out his wallet and payed right in cash, popping about 400 dollars on her shoes. "Thank you so much sir, really, what's your name" Candice asked. The man turned to her and he winked.

The man was known as the 'Hamptons King'. He had heard of Candice's parties and instantly recognized her, as the king of the Hamptons he was impressed. The man was a multi-millionaire, with estates everywhere. He had no wife and no kids, his job was too cool to describe in just a few words and for his age he looked amazing.

"Oh and here's my number, I'd like to host and fund your next party, in fact I want you to throw it at my mansion," he proposed boldly. She was impressed with his assertive nature, "Okay, I'll definitely consider your offer," Candice replied.


The next morning all four women met at their favorite little place for brunch- a little diner place on Madison Avenue. The ladies were looking over the menu when they came across Candice's new heels, "Wow Candice, are you trying to kill a bitch with those Louis Vuittons," Michelle asked.

Torrie and Ashley looked down and they too were impressed, Candice stuck her legs out and began modeling them. "Why thank you, after my credit card was declined a nice man payed for them and he is even offering to throw my next party... at his mansion," Candice told them all about.

"Did ya sleep with him," Ashley asked instantly. "No actually, apparently he's just a fan of mine," Candice told them. "Well, that's no reason to spend nearly half a grand on a pair of shoes," Michelle argued.

Candice drew them in, "He's not just any man, he's the 'Hamptons King'," she told them. Torrie gasped, as a young woman in the city she would always hear about the mythical man known as the 'Hamptons King'.

"He's real," Torrie asked innocently as if he were Santa, "Well either way, you can't take the heels... then it makes you like his-". Ashley interrupted, "It makes you his bitch Candice," she finished off the sentence for Torrie.

Candice plugged her ears with her fingers, "Nope, nope, nope! As long as I don't sleep with him for the things he can offer me, I'm not his bitch," she argued.

Candice was sticking to her guns.

"The woman has got a point," Michelle said, "Men think they have the power, but oh how they don't!"

Torrie raised her finger to argue the point, "Well they do, some of them... like my publisher, who is declining to publish my book," Torrie told them, "He changed his mind and my book is no longer happening, despite my years of hard work, all because he said so."

"Fuck men," Ashley proclaimed like one of those cliche feminists. "I mean it, fuck them all! Fuck everybody, male or female, straight or gay, black or white- and anybody else who tries to run your life or change it."

All we wanted was to be ourselves.

"I'm gonna keep shopping and throwing parties, I don't care," Candice declared. "And I'm gonna get my first book published," Torrie followed. "And I'm with a woman, whom I love to sleep with," Ashley threw out there.

They all waited for Michelle, "I'm basically killing my marriage, for a fucking city... but hey, it's New York," Michelle brought down the vibe.

But why was that so hard for me?


Later that evening Ashley had a date with her girlfriend, Mickie wanted to take her somewhere special. Ashley forgot what it felt like to be in a relationship- getting dressed up all nice for a night out in a city that can offer so much. All of Mickie's friends came along, excited for the young night.

The women took an uber, according to them 'cabs were overrated' and ubers were the new thing. They took Ashley to another art gallery and as an artist she couldn't have asked for a better place... until she walked in.

The art gallery was underground- literally, you had to walk down under a bar to get to the gallery. Pretentious hipsters were everywhere and that only brought back cringe-worthy memories for Ashley, back in the day when she was a hipster herself.

What was even more pretentious was the actual art- it was a woman's art gallery. Women body parts were painted and photographed, real poop and pee of women were on display. However, no pervert man could get the 'treat', it was a lesbian gallery in a lesbian bar for a reason.

As an artist, Ashley was not impressed. The lighting in the gallery room was off, the colors and textures weren't cohesive, and the shock value wasn't as shocking... Ashley's seen it before, but the poop and pee were new.

"Isn't this place revolutionary, it's truly innovative, right," Mickie asked Ashley. Ashley turned to her, she wanted to playfully say 'no', but all of Mickie's friends turned to her too. So Ashley nodded with a smile, "Definitely," she told them, "It's quite something."

What she meant to say was "It's quite literally shit".


After Torrie declined Brock's offer to go on a date, Brock persisted to try. Torrie also persisted to try, but she wanted to try with something else- her book. She had another meeting with her publisher and all of the other big men from her publishing house, wanting to see if Torrie could convince them.

Torrie layed out her plan to try and convince them in the kitchen, and it was looking very sweet.

Out on the kitchen counter layed cups of flour, milk, a small amount of butter, four eggs, sugar, vanilla extract, red food coloring, sprinkles and sweet white frosting... among other odd ingredients, like sour cream and salt.

Brock looked confused, as a successful businessman, he did not understand Torrie's vision. Regardless, he wanted to help. "Okay, let's start," he said, but by then she had already started.

It was a typical day for Torrie, but a first for Brock. The two hustled, often getting dirty and sweaty just from mixing up in the pink bowl and running around the kitchen to get things done. Torrie's kitchen window was open, you could hear the city roaring, yet somehow every noise the city made or every move it made... Torrie stuck to her own path.

Brock finally had enough. He put the pink bowl down and dropped the egg beater whisk mixer, "This is silly Torrie, I'm sorry, but if I can give you advice it's that this will not work... you need to take a more professional approach, maybe make some points about how your book can bring in the big money," Brock advised her.

Torrie was in the middle of putting in a badge of cupcakes into the oven. She turned to him after closing the oven, with her face all sweaty and covered in flour. "This is my way Brock, this is who I am... don't try to control my approach," she responded, "And if you're not gonna help, please leave."

Brock stuck by because he really liked Torrie and he really liked red velvet cupcakes... as a treat, not as a professional tool.


Ashley was cruising around the art gallery, sticking by Mickie's side at all times. She felt like that one awkward person who follows their only friend at the party for the entire duration, it was a horrible feeling for Ashley.

The drinks were rolling out, little appetizers were being served by the hip and good-looking waiters (all women of course). The artists were all having good chuckles with one another, Mickie and the other fellow lesbians were all admiring and raving over the artists from the corner of the gallery.

Ashley didn't understand and the words slipped out of her mouth, "What's the big deal?" They all turned to her, offended. "What's your problem... uh, do you even understand anything," one of Mickie's friends rhetorically asked.

And as Ashley began scouting the room, she realized she didn't fit in. Not just in that gallery, but in the 'community' as a whole. Ashley somehow always thought she would be a natural fit for the lesbian community, but the standards were tougher than expected.

"Wow, sorry, it was a joke guys," Ashley insisted, "Seriously, they are all exceptional godly creatures... like wow, I'm amazed by them! Learn to pick up on a little sarcasm, gosh!"

The bunch didn't laugh, "I'm surprised you're dating Mickie," one of them admitted. "Okay, that's enough," Mickie told them off. She held Ashley's hand and Ashley just decided to keep her mouth shut.


A few weeks ago I cut Mark from my life- I told him I was busy with my own marriage and new life and the funny thing was that I now needed him for the same reasons he needed me.

Michelle thought about Jack and she still loved him very much, so it hurt her to know the two were having a cold rift. After she ran away for a day, Michelle eventually returned to her apartment of course... but things weren't the same.

Michelle and Jack rarely had real conversations, they would ignore each other for the most part. Jack was just waiting to finally move. While Michelle couldn't stand the silence in the home- so she sneaked out to see a friend.

Mark agreed to meet with her at their favorite little coffee place, Kaffee 1668. She missed seeing his face and when she finally did come across him, sitting all lonesome at a small table, she rushed to him openly.

"Karma is a bitch," Michelle said, "You came to me with a problem, and I blew you off... and now, ironically, I'm going through the same thing."

"So Jack is controlling too," he asked. She nodded and began to cry a little, "Yeah, he wanted me to leave the city for him and move to New Jersey... I said 'no' and we got in a fight, and I ran away like a coward, and now we rarely talk," she explained to him.

That day I learned that no matter how busy life gets, never ditch a friend.

After ordering her a warm cup of coffee and a croissant, he put his hand on her arm and said, "I'm sorry Michelle, but talk to me."

Michelle knew she had a good friend in Mark, the two went on and on, till the clock seemed like it was just a prop.


Over at the Hamptons, Candice was getting a tour of the Hamptons king's mansion. She wanted to see what she was working with for her next party, and she was very impressed.

The neighborhood was very classy, but not traditional or suburban in any way.

It was a three-story mansion, with colossal white columns standing up in the front and a healthy green grass spreading about. Giant arched windows gave Candice a peek of what was inside.

When the Hamptons king opened up the large wooden doors, everything was what she expected. The giant chandelier in the middle of the entrance gleamed so beautifully, and the white, glossy glass staircases were enormous- two sides of staircases leading to two different places, the one on the right led to the second floor and the one on the left led to the third floor.

It was paradise, quite literally and Candice had no guilt or shame.

Even the small little vase of white lillys on the small table by the front door were luxuriously placed.

The kitchen had marble counters and seashells were carefully arranged in certain places. The polished furniture was mostly all white, with a few exceptions of beige, gold, brown, and other classical neutral colors. The mansion had a very tropical feeling- small trees and other exotic plants were meshed with the interior and the mansion itself had a very 'beachy smell'.

Candice couldn't believe it, she was too overwhelmed to even say anything. He poured piƱa colada for the two and he carried on with the tour. The backyard really stole the show and Candice was convinced she was going to throw her next party there.

The backyard also had a healthy and neat lawn of grass. Shrubs were perfectly lined up across the field, with marble steps leading down from the patio. A blue and shimmering pool layed in the middle of the backyard. The pool was long and somewhat narrow, placed in a marble floor.

Candice envisioned her party at that mansion and nobody could stop her... not even the bank or any jealous bitch. She was sticking to her guns and this man was giving her the bullets.

"So what do you think," he asked, trying to appear modest. "I'm throwing my party here... I'm for sure throwing my party here," she excitedly exclaimed.

And just to keep it real, Candice made her party a charity event this time.


Torrie rushed through the streets, in a hustle. She had the badge of cupcakes in a little pink box, and thankfully it had a handle for her to carry like a purse. Regardless, it was a pain in the ass.

She ran through the people and she ran through the streets- Torrie was determined and she wasn't going to let anybody stand in her way. A man pulled her, "Hey, this is a construction zone, you can't walk through here," the man yelled at her.

Torrie stopped and looked him straight in the eye, "I'm going, sorry," she told him, with the sweetest tone. Torrie ran through the site, even getting some small chunks of wood in her shoes.

Torrie had a path and she wasn't going to change direction, she knew where she was going for the first time. She always knew what she wanted, but now she had an idea of how to get there.

After a jog, Torrie met with the publishers and right away presented them each with a cupcake. While Brock was doubting her and while the cupcakes were in the oven, Torrie wrote her publishers a pitch for her book and she made them believe.

After her convincing pitch and after some delicious pastries, Torrie convinced them. "Congratulations, we're publishing your book," one of the men told her, "Rodger bring out the contract."

Torrie shook their hands and she promised them that they wouldn't regret it. That night, she went to sleep with a self-confident smile.

The girl stayed true to herself the entire time, she made the world follow her instead of following it.


Ashley was doing the opposite of staying true to herself, she was keeping herself quiet and she was apologizing for her opinions... when she didn't have to, even if they were Mickie's friends. The art gallery was beginning to get more and more packed, many preferred to see the art in the night and Mickie's friends decided to stick by with the crowd.

"We've been here for like four hours... we're being posers, we saw the art now let's go," Ashley said, "I'm starving!"

Again, they all turned to her. "No offense or anything, but if anybody is a poser it's you," one of Mickie's friends told her. "Are you even lesbian, or are you one of those annoying straight girls who 'experiments' to turn on the guys," she questioned Ashley's motifs.

People want you to be real, but how can you when they get offended by the real you?

Ashley had enough. "Okay, first of all, I'm a Brooklyn bitch, meaning I've seen it all and your little pretentious artsy lifestyle does not impress me or intimidate me," Ashley let them all know. "I've never called myself a 'lesbian', however, don't dare question my feelings for Mickie... because they are real, I really like her, like a lot and you all snobs have no right to question that or lower it into what you assume," Ashley ranted on.

Ashley kissed Mickie and hugged her goodbye, "Don't follow me, I'm not mad at you, but I do need time alone," Ashley whispered to Mickie. "Oh and I don't like your friends, in case that wasn't clear," she added.

A 'Brooklyn Bitch' always stays real, no matter where you put her or how hard you try to change her. Ashley knew who she was and she knew what she felt inside- it was all very authentic.


The night was dark, but not too dark, the skies were a shade of navy blue. Michelle had Mark by her side, after leaving Kaffee 1668, the two took a small stroll around Central Park.

Mark even accompanied Michelle to her place, but when she walked into her apartment it was empty.

All of Jack's stuff were gone, no sign of him anywhere. He left a note on the kitchen table and it read- Bye. Michelle didn't cry, but instead folded it neatly and carefully placed it in the chest pocket of her shirt.

From the doorway, Mark could tell Michelle needed somebody. He went over and hugged her, but she only accepted about three seconds of the hug. "It's okay, you should get going, Victoria is probably waiting," Michelle told him.

The two hugged one last time and out he went. She watched him from her living room window, he turned around to her and she waved goodbye.

I was true to myself, to the city, to my friends, and to my love. There was nothing I could do anymore, but to stay true to myself and I wasn't going to feel sorry for that.


Special Guest Stars~ The Hamptons King, Mickie James, Brock Lesnar, and Mark Calaway.

Published On May 15, 2016.