CHAPTER TEN
I am standing outside of the hotel waiting for Colby to come with the rental car so we can grab a quick lunch. Dean's a few feet away. Still, I jump and panic when someone hugs me from behind. I kick him and throw a punch as I spin around and immediately realize I overreacted.
"Back off, asshat!" Dean says, seeing my reaction and pulling the guy off of me.
"Ouch! Chill! Chill, man!" Scott Colton says.
I recover and say, "Dean, it's okay. Let him go,"
Dean has a death grip on poor Scotty, who is super confused right now. "He touched you... You just attacked him. You sure you want me to let him go?" Dean asks.
"That's Colt Cabana," I explain. "He's harmless. He's a friend, Dean. He just startled me."
Dean reluctantly lets Scotty go. "Jeez, April, I didn't know you had a bodyguard," Scotty says.
"Next time, don't sneak up on me," I say. I force myself to give him a quick hug. I don't really want to be touched, but I did just attack the guy. "What are you doing here, Scotty?"
"I've got a show in town and Phil was worried with you getting hurt, so he asked me to check on you. I didn't mean to scare you, but clearly you can handle yourself." His trademark smile is back in place.
"I'm sorry," I say. "I'm under a lot of stress."
"It's okay. Hey, are you free tonight?"
"I've got Smackdown tonight, but my match is being taped pretty early. Why?"
"Wanna come to a real wrestling show?"
"I'm not really supposed to go to indie shows. The rumor mills go nuts and it's against our contracts."
"That's what disguises are for! Besides, it's not like you'd be wrestling. Come on, Miss April. I know you miss the indies."
He's right, and if I go to an indie show, I have zero chance of having an issue with TJ tonight. Still, the idea of being in a crowd scares me.
"I'm fighting Tommy Dreamer. You can't miss that."
That asshole knows what a big fan of Dreamer's I am. "You're a jerk," I tell him.
"Is that a yes?"
I sigh. "Fine, but I need two tickets." There's no way I'm doing this alone.
"Done. They'll be at the door. Tell them Colt sent you." Scotty's super excited right now and it's kind of contagious. I've been a little mad at him since the podcast he and Phil did that made everything worse, but it's hard to stay mad at a guy who acts like a hyperactive toddler. He reaches out his arms hesitantly for a hug and I force myself to hug him again. He's Phil's best friend in the universe, the only person from the wrestling world he's still actively talking to besides me. He might have answered his phone the day Justin Gabriel called, but they don't really talk either. I can't push Scotty away without Phil finding out and possibly getting mad at me.
"I'll see you tonight," he says, happily skipping away. Scotty has mocked my skipping before, but I know he means it to be funny, so I let it go. Scotty's a goofball in general and I'm used to him.
"Fucking fucktard," Dean mumbles. "That guy is annoying. I'm kinda sorry I won't be there to see Dreamer beat his ass, but I've got two matches tonight, and one's late."
"I know. Colby won't be able to go either," I say.
"You shouldn't go alone," Dean reminds me. He doesn't tell me I can't, which I really appreciate. Dean goes out of his way to never take my choices from me. I think he understands me better than even Colby does right now.
"Rosa doesn't have any appearances tonight, so I figured I'd ask her." I'm already texting her. Thirty seconds later, she texts back that she's totally in. I smile. Maybe this is what I need.
*Skip, skip, skip...LATER*
My match lasts about fifty-three seconds, not including entrances. I beat Cameron with the black widow. Ariane, which is her real name, taps almost before I've even got it locked in. I don't really like Ariane, so I'm happy the match ends quickly.
Scotty's show is ten minutes away and starts in a half an hour. Rosa and I hurry to the venue and get our tickets, which are front row seats. I'm mildly impressed. Rosa's hidden us with wigs and sunglasses. It's not subtle, but it does the trick. She's a redhead and, God help me, I'm blonde. No one seems to recognize us.
The show is great. It's not filled with forty-minute promos from some omnipotent authority figure or anything but straight-up Wrestling. I'm suddenly remembering everything I love about this business. Rosa is definitely enjoying herself as well.
I see a few people I haven't seen in ages, including Drew McIntyre, who is going by his legal name of Drew Galloway now. Drew was released from WWE last year for no apparent reason. It was our loss. I'm amazed by what I see. Gone is the terrible 3MB gimmick, replaced by raw awesomeness and talent. After beating the crap out of his opponent, Drew picks up a microphone and that seals the deal. He owns the audience now. His promos are amazing. Why did we never let the man talk? And that accent doesn't hurt either.
"I think I'm in love," Rosa informs me. I don't blame her, and I'm pretty sure she isn't kidding.
Finally, it's time for Scotty and Tommy's match. Rosa's bopping along to the Boom, boom, Colt Cabana music and I laugh, glad she's having fun.
Tommy Dreamer is as awesome as I remember. He and Scotty have fantastic comedic timing. The match is funny and hardcore at the same time, and Tommy wins in the end. It's a perfect night.
Afterward, Scottt runs up to me and Rosa. "Join us for dinner," he says.
"Who's 'us'?" I ask.
Tommy and Drew smile at us. "Absolutely!" Rosa answers for both of us.
Drew wraps his arms around us both and his embrace is warm and comforting. There's nothing scary about it. It's like he flipped a switch when he left the ring. He's seriously intimidating and psychotic (like, Dean-level psychotic) in the ring and a total sweetheart outside of it. I've forgotten what a nice, soft-spoken guy he actually is.
"I missed ya girls," Drew says.
"Damn, Galloway, you're a sight for sore eyes," Rosa tells him.She kisses his cheek.
"Did ya tire of being Fandimwit's valet and decide to try your luck on the indies?" Drew asks.
"It's tempting," Rosa admits, surprising me. I know her gimmick sucks, but I had no idea she has considered leaving WWE. The idea of Rosa not being around anymore legitimately breaks my heart. I finally made a good friend, a girl friend. I can't lose her.
"Ya look like ya need a pint, lass," Drew tells me. "I'm buying."
I am a little nervous to accept a drink from a man right now but I'm not alone. Besides, Scotty's annoying at times and is a goofball but I know he's not out to hurt me, Tommy Dreamer is... Well, he's Tommy Dreamer. And Drew is someone who stayed in an abusive relationship suffering silently because his father raised him not to hit a woman. I know damn well he'd never hurt me, and all three of them are the types to protect a woman who needs it, not be the one she needs protection from.
"Rosa doesn't drink," I remember aloud.
"I'll order the venue's finest bottled water for our sober friend," Drew promises.
"Such a gentleman," Rosa says flirtatiously as Drew takes her hand in his.
Scotty leads the way. Rosa stays close to Drew, chatting his ear off. I'm left with Tommy Dreamer and I have no idea what to say.
"Whatever's got you down, fuck it for a night," Tommy says. "WWE is a hard life, AJ, but you can choose a different one if you want. You should do what makes you happy. Something's not doing that right now."
"It's April," I tell him. "And thanks."
"Anytime. As an old, washed-up wrestler, it's my job to mentor the younger generation."
"You're not washed-up. You kicked Scotty's ass tonight."
"Well, he boom-boomed the wrong way and I saw an opportunity," Tommy says with a sarcastic laugh. I smile. "Seriously, though, it's nice to meet you. I've seen your work, April, and you're really good."
Oh my God, did freaking Tommy Dreamer just compliment me? I may die. Seriously. I'm going to have a heart attack. This night is turning out to be awesome.
Right. I should probably say something before he thinks I'm nuts. Of course, I am nuts, but that isn't the point. A wrestling God just complimented my talent. What's the right response?
"Thank you," I manage. "That's really sweet of you."
"It's true. So what's got a girl who should be on top of the world falling to pieces?"
I look at him in shock. "No, it's not that obvious," he promises me. "I'm just really good at reading people, and I can tell you're not a happy woman."
It's weird, but I almost want to tell him the truth right here and now. Tommy's genuine concern and no-bullshit attitude makes him easy to talk to. I don't, though, no exactly. I can't even tell Phil, so I definitely can't tell a man I idolize but hardly know. Instead, I say, "Things have just been hard."
"They get better," he promises. "It's cliché as fuck, but it's true. No matter how much crap life shovels at you, you'll get through it. I can tell you're tough. You're from Jersey, and that's New York's annoying younger sibling, and I know you've got a thick skin. I also know you don't want to talk right now, so how about this?" He writes something down on a piece of paper and gives it to me. "If it ever gets to be too much and you do want to talk to someone who's outside of everything, give me a call. I don't care if it's three in the morning. It's not like I sleep anyway."
"Why?" I ask.
"Because I had twins a decade ago and my sleeping habits never recovered. That, and one too many concussions."
"No, I mean, why are you offering to help me? You don't know me."
"Because you need it, April. I've worked in this business a long time and I've made a lot of friends. I'm just adding one more to my list."
Did Tommy Dreamer just call me his friend? This is too awesome.
We've arrived at the restaurant and Scotty motions for us to hurry up and get inside. We sit around the table together, and we're just five people who get paid to beat people up for a living, hanging out and joking around and forgetting all the stress we deal with outside of what Tommy calls our "wrestling bubble."
By the time we're ready to go, everyone is drunk except Rosa. Drew, being Scottish, is holding it well, but the rest of us are pretty wasted. Scotty decides he and Tommy will share a cab back to their hotel. Drew isn't staying with them, so Rosa offers to give him a lift. We pack into her rental car. I'm glad we took that, seeing as how I definitely shouldn't be driving. Drew gets into the front passenger seat and I curl up in the back behind Rosa. I'm ready to tuck myself into a ball and go to sleep.
"Ya best buckle up, April," Drew says. "Better safe than sorry and all that."
I roll my eyes. "Yes, Dad," I say sarcastically, but I know he's right. I put on my seatbelt.
Drew and Rosa chat pleasantly as I get lost in incoherent thoughts and stare off into space. I'm tired and more drunk than I should be. It's only when I see the lights coming toward the side of the car that I realize something is wrong. Everything is wrong. I can't even register that it's another car before the impact happens.