The convoy pulled in front of the hotel we were all staying at. Once again I was grateful the promotion paid for my room. And this place wasn't cheap. Nearly all of us had luxury suites or close to it. The air was cool so all of us were shivering as we got off of our buses. The engines were still running and in a small area we were choking on carbon monoxide. Things weren't even easier as people saw me stepping off the bus with Carmen Solo. A number of eyes were looking my way. The guys would either smile and just shake their heads. The girls glared and would whisper among themselves. I was starting to worry what sort of stuff was spreading about me.
"Just ignore them," Carmen broke my train of thought "it's me they're thinking about really."
"Why?" I asked like an idiot.
"You're new."
"That answer had nothing to do with you."
"You sure?" Carmen slugged me in the arm.
"Okay, now I'm confused."
Carmen leapt onto my back like an annoying child, grinning from ear to ear while talking into mine "Good, I like you like that."
"Just as long as you like me." I whispered back, trying to sound sexy but most likely not.
I carried Carmen to the luggage compartment and retrieved her stuff and mine. In our profession it is very common the newest talent is basically submissive or subservient to the established names. "Young Boys" as they're called in Japan. So naturally it was expected of me to help someone else with their bags. Whether it be at the arena or at the hotels. Until you've established yourself, you're someone's bitch. At least this was a good cover for me, regarding whatever was building between Carmen and I.
The promotion was always on its A-Game when it came to lodging. All you need do is go to the front desk, give your name, they give you the entry card or key, and you were finished. Though it does get fun when the person working the desk gets confused if a talent uses their pro-name or their real name. You often don't use your real name so not to break kayfabe (that's breaking script/fantasy or whatever you want to call it for you none wrestling fans). Still there were a lot of people ahead of us and behind us. So it was still taking a little while to get to the clerk.
Carmen and I were close to each other in the hotel lobby, but the closer we got to the desk, the more some of the other talent would ask me to help carry some of their stuff. By the time I reached the desk I was fully loaded. My body was covered in straps for suitcases of different sizes. I was happy I had a strong foundation, otherwise I would have been crippled. Carmen already received her door-card and was waiting for me. I gave the clerk my name and was given mine. The struggle to reach, grab, and hold it was amazing. Thankfully I had "Gamer Hands". I was even more thankful when Carmen held my card for me, staring at it like a deviant thief holding a stolen credit card.
Turns out everyone whose luggage was strapped to my body was staying on the same floor, myself included. Because of the number of bags I was carrying I wound up taking an elevator by myself. Stepping off of the lift, I found myself doing door-to-door delivery. I felt I had shrunk by the time I reached my own room, but there waiting for me was Carmen. She was standing outside the door having not gone in. I was still carrying her bags and my own.
"You still have my card?" I asked, winded.
"Yup, but you'll have to find it." she replied with a wink, hinting it was in her pants.
Had we been alone, truly alone. Nobody knowing us. I would have intimately frisked her without hesitation. But at that moment I was looking in every direction just waiting for someone to step outside their door and see Carmen blocking my doorway. It didn't make things any easier for me that Carmen's finger and thumb had gripped her zipper and was making movements like she was about to open her pants.
A door opened and Carmen stopped playing around. She reached into her back pocket finding my card and started opening the door to my room. The other wrestlers managed to see us just in time for Carmen to take her luggage strap off of my shoulder.
"Thank you for helping me with my stuff." Carmen smiled.
"You're welcome." I smiled back.
She took several playful skips to the end of the hall and opened her door, entered, and closed it behind her. The last door on the right, I thought to myself. By now more doors were popping open and numerous talents were entering the hallway. The bus ride was long, so everyone was ready to get out and stretch their legs for the night. Many of the guys gathered around me, asking me to go hang out with them. I was relieved they didn't ask about Carmen and I eagerly agreed to get out with the gang. Opening my door, I literally tossed my suitcase into the room and shut it just as quickly. The nightlife was about to begin.
While outside and walking to our first destination, I enjoyed several silent laughs from the guys complaining about the cold. In a previous profession I was a grocery store butcher. So I wasn't too bothered by the cold, having worked in a room that was almost at freezing temperature all year. But I'd be lying if I said if the wind kicked up, it didn't bother me.
Our first destination was a restaurant the guys really liked. Back home this business didn't exist and I was curious about the food within. The atmosphere felt like a bar, but with a country kitchen flair. While waiting for the food, we each took turns about what made us fans before getting into the business. My story involved a video game from a now bought out wrestling company.
The next round of discussion involved our worst in-ring injuries or embarrassments. The stories shared could make a person lose their appetite. One guy told us how he crapped his pants after falling on his butt, and still finished the match. Another spoke about his leg snapping just above the ankle, and his limb being all rubbery like Harry Potter's arm in Chamber of Secrets. Mine was about the time I dislocated my shoulder after falling out of the ring. I even reset it by slamming my arm against a ring post like Riggs does in the Lethal Weapon movies and still completed the match. By the time we finished, I couldn't remember if anyone fully ate their meal. Even though the food was rather good.
Our next destination the local mall. By then we'd split off into smaller groups. Some of the guys had a thing for buying expensive sneakers, paying well over the retail price. The others wanted to find the toy store or arcade under the excuse for vlogging. Remembering what I said on Egon's vlog the previous night, I decided to avoid the shoe store, and opted to go with the toy and gamer gang.
Stepping into the toy store was like stepping into my childhood. Many of the action figures, play sets and video games sold inside sparked great debates between all of us. I was convinced I needed buy at least one thing before leaving the store, so I settled on an action figure of my favorite comic book character since childhood. Regrouping with the others, we decided to walk towards the downtown district of the city and take everything in before returning to the hotel.
I'll admit when we returned I was grateful to be back in the building. By then I was actually a little cold and wanting to warm up. I was also curious to catch up with Carmen. We didn't exchange numbers so the only way for me to see how her evening went was to see her in person. I patiently waited for the opportunity. The hallway was buzzing with activity. People coming and going between rooms like something out of a Scooby Doo cartoon. When the coast was clear, I walked toward her door and gave it a light knock. Nothing. Another few knocks. Still nothing. Either she was out of her room, or she was out cold. Guess playing catchup was a bust.
I decided to close out my night like usual and participated between room hopping. In one room, some guys were behaving like children and wrestling on a stripped bed. In another, they were discussing the business and what sort of dream matches they wanted to have. In the last room I was greeted by a handful of the female talent. The one who opened the door blurted out "It's the foot bitch!" which was followed by a roar of laughter and cheers. Each of them lifted at least one leg off the ground and waved their foot and flexed their toes in my direction, an assortment of shoes on, socks, or barefoot no less. My skin became as pale as a sheet of notebook paper, my veins being the blue lines to write on. By now I felt as if I'd been kicked in the nuts, and not in a fun way, if there was such a way. All I could do was turn and leave.
