Chapter Two: The Bad…
Welcome to the East Coast
By Victoria
I’m a West Coast girl and I don’t know how to drive in any sort of winter weather. The smallest bit of snow, sleet, whatever, I want no part of it. And lucky for me, during my first few months with the WWE, February shows in Huntington, West Virginia, and Columbus, Ohio, put us right in the middle of a heavy ice storm.
This storm had already started as most of us were flying into the Huntington area. I could see how horrible it was outside, so at the rental car counter I upgraded to a truck. Not that I have any idea how to use four-wheel drive or anything, but I figured going to the truck was a smart move because I knew that’s what people do when it snows. I ran into Triple H and William Regal while I was at the counter and they offered to have me ride with them. I was still new at this point and wanted to show everyone what this rookie could handle a little rough weather, so I thanked them for the offer but assured that I was fine.
As I was walking out, I saw Molly Holly and asked her to ride with me-thank God I did. The weather was horrendous the entire way to the building. Because the driving was so slow, it took us much longer to get to the building than we had planned for. It took so much extra time that the two of us has to put our makeup and gear on in the truck. When we finally got there, we pretty much had to run right to the ring because we were up.
I remember when we were done I was so happy with our performance. Fortunately, the two of us were comfortable in the ring with each other because we’d been working together for a while. We knew what we wanted to do in there and the agents we have helping us are simply amazing. All of those things together helped up go out there and give the fans a great experience, despite that face that we had just gotten to the building and were all frazzled thanks to our ride through the storm.
When the match was over everyone was telling us we should get right on our way to Columbus. Now we never leave until the show is over because there’s so much that can be learned watching the other Superstars perform. But with the weather outside, leaving seemed like a great idea on this night.
One thing became clear as soon as we got outside: This storm wasn’t showing any signs of slowing down. As we drove along the highway, we actually saw power lines snap and trees fall over. Watching these things go on around me was surreal. I’ve never seen the winter weather break trees apart right in front of me. This kind of stiff just doesn’t happen where I’m from.
We weren’t too far down the highway when we hit a police blockade. The had to close the roads thanks to the power being out all over the area. We had to get off at the next exit, but were in luck because there was at least a motel there.
The lobby is real dim when we walk in, there were a few candles keeping it from being pitch dark. With what we could see, we could tell there was a woman behind the counter and a couple of seedy-looking guys just hanging out in the lounge area in the dark. They weren’t doing anything. There were just sitting there in the dark. As we’re talking to the clerk, checking in an all, I can tell these guys are line hawks, staring right at us.
Keep in mind, both Molly and I went right from the ring to the car with no stops. That means we were still wearing our gear, makeup and everything from the show. Of course, dressed like that, these guys start asking us what we do for a living. There is no way I’m going to say anything to these guys, so I pretend like I didn’t hear them.
After asking a few times, this one guy gets frustrated and just yells to the clerk, “Hey lady, put them right by our room tonight.” Great. This is the last thing we need with a storm outside. We’re stranded in some small motel in the middle of nowhere, no one knows we’re here and we got weird guys wanted to hang out with us. This is all shaping up for a perfect evening.
Now, I don’t consider myself a prima donna, but there is one thing about me that the other girls make fun of me for. I’m a Hilton Honors member. I don’t know what to say, I love the Hilton. I like to have someone there in the lobby to greet me. I like not having to walk back outside to get to my room. That always creeps me out.
To her credit, the clerk offered to walk us to our room with her flashlight after we’re all checked in. With these guys watching us, thought, I didn’t want to go right to our room, so we ask if there are any places to eat nearby. The clerk tells us there is a strip mall not to far down the road.
Getting back in the car probably wasn’t the best decision, but we needed food, candles, and, more important, didn’t want to be anywhere near those guys in the lobby.
Molly’s taking it real slow on the roads. The storm still hasn’t let up at all. We’re both a bit nervous being out on the road. Then we saw a Wal-Mart. I will openly admit Wal-Mart is my favorite store in the world. Seeing it there in the middle of the storm made me feel like I was Dorothy catching my first glimpse of the Emerald City. After we bought some of the things we need to get through the night, we noticed a Chinese restaurant in the area, too. It was actually closed but they let us come in and eat.
We headed back to our motel, parked near our room, and find out that the guys from the lounge are our new next door neighbors. Not wanting to just stroll right past these guys to let them know we’re staying next door, Molly and I time it just right and run straight from the car to our room without them even seeing us. Molly brought her DVD played, and as we’re watching a movie we hear the guys say they were making a beer run. Yes, we could hear their conversation through the wall.
Once they all piled into their car and took off, I ran right to the front desk and asked for a room change. The woman behind the desk asked me if there was anything wrong with the room, so I told her I wasn’t comfortable being next to that group of guys. She laughs me off and says, “Oh, those guys are harmless!”
Saying it with such confidence, I figured that meant she knew the guys so I asked if they worked there. “No, I just met them tonight. They’re going to get some beer.” Wonderful! Real nice criteria you have for judging people.
What a great place to be stranded.
She eventually switched our room to the other side of the motel. It was definitely kind of spooky getting settled in for the night even though the weird guys didn’t bother us once we made the switch. We had no hot water and had to do everything by candlelight. Once we were able to get out of our makeup and gear, we watched some DVDs until we fell asleep. We got up early the next morning to get right back out on the road. The storm had stopped, making the roads a little bit better to drive on.
I didn’t care that there was still some ice on the roads. Molly knew she could get us to the building if she took it slow and I couldn’t wait to get away from that motel.
As we pulled out of the parking lot I was thinking about how great it was that I ran into Molly back at the car rental counter in the airport. Not only did she save me from have to drive in this East Coast storm, but as a relative newcomer, it was nice to have quality bonding time with another WWE Diva.
I had to get over the fun of our little “Diva Bonding Night” quickly, though. Jazz and I were facing Molly and Jacqueline in a tag team match on RAW in a few hours.
When we finally got to the building, we told everyone our story. At the end of it, a lot of guys looked kinda disappointed.
One of them spoke up and explained why. “That’s it? I mean, didn’t you guys have to snuggle together in one bed to keep warm? Was there anything like that between the two of you? Touching of any kind?”
“No, there was no touching! So sorry to disappoint you all. Nice to see you’re relieved we survived the night.”
I guess boys will be boys.
• PHOTOS •
Check out the photos from the book