Monday.
Later that night, Noelle lay in bed, thinking
about how great her evening had been and how much she liked
Jackson. She tried to remember the last time she felt so bubbly
over a guy, but failed. She had never felt like this with a guy;
not even with the one before him. But, even more amazing than that,
she felt so safe with him. It had been too long since she felt safe
with a guy. That was something only her sister would
understand.
She finally remembered Chelsey and her
warning to her and smiled. She was probably waiting for her call,
like a father waited for his daughter to get home from a first
date. She reached for her phone next to her to send a text to
Chelsey.
We went to Jimbo’s for the best dessert ever!
I like him. Goodnight.
CHAPTER TWO
Pulling up to the arena, Noelle found herself
smiling. This was the beginning of the next chapter in her life.
One that she had been looking forward to for some time now. She was
still wearing that smile, even as she pulled into her parking spot
after being directed where to go by the parking lot security
attendants. She wondered if everyone was as happy as she was to be
starting a new job.
As she put her car in park, she looked over
toward the crowd of fans waiting at the gate. They all looked
toward her car, wondering if she were one of their idols. It was a
chilly and rainy day for the beginning of October, and she realized
that some of those fans were probably out there waiting for hours,
hoping for a glimpse of their favorites. She saw them looking at
her, wondering who she was. She smiled and wished that she could
help them. She also wished that all the wrestlers made a point to
go talk to the fans especially hardcore fans such as these, who
wait in the rain to see them.
She reached for her purse and started to head
inside the arena. She couldn’t wait to start her new job as BRAWL‘s
physical therapist. She had spoken to her Pop and knew that today
was just going to be the basics, meeting the staff, learning the
equipment and rooms, etc. It was a practice show tonight. The live
taping would be tomorrow, so she so was going to see first hand
what that was like.
She was excited to see her Pop and share this
huge new experience with him. Things were really looking up for her
in life. She met a great guy and was
going to go out with him tonight, and her
dream job started today. It suddenly occurred to her, as she was
walking towards the “talent” entrance, that landing this job may
have been the good luck charm she had heard about.
The security guard interrupted her thoughts
by asking her who she was here to see. She smiled and said,
“Actually, I work here now. Noelle Reid.”
The guard checked his list. He shook his
head, confirming her suspicions, and picked up the phone to do some
inquiring. As she waited, Noelle looked around to see if she saw
anyone she knew. She was nervous about meeting all the people, but
with her Pop there, she knew she was going to be fine. She had a
feeling that she would know more people than she realized. That
made it a bit more comforting. She grew up around a bunch of these
guys, and knew a lot of the newer guys from her Pop’s wrestling
school. She was so excited to get this job. “Okay, thanks,” the
guard said into the phone, before turning to Noelle. “Go on back.
Joe is expecting you and should be back there somewhere. Wait, are
you related to Larry?”
Noelle smiled and knew this was coming and
she’d get this a lot, so she smiled and said, “Yes. I’m his
daughter.“
“He did mention that his daughter is going to
be working here, but he didn‘t mention you‘d be starting
today.”
“He doesn’t know that I am starting today.
I’m about to surprise him.”
“Cool! Go right on in. I’m sure he’s back
there somewhere, as well.”
It had been a long time since she had gone to
see Pop at a show. She saw a bunch of people from the talent, road
crew, catering, and even janitors. She hoped to see a