By the time Torrie returned to the locker room, everyone had already gone. She'd had no idea it was so late as she retrieved her belongings. It was too bad, because she'd wanted to thank Candice for her kindness. She decided she would call the brunette when she got back to the hotel.
As she was heading out the door, she nearly collided with Michelle - her new enemy, by the looks of things. The skinny blonde shot her a dirty look and stepped past her. Torrie continued out, opting to just ignore the other woman.
"Don't think for one second that this is all over," Michelle's voice called after her.
Torrie glanced back over her shoulder to see the younger diva standing in the open doorway, her foot keeping the door open. Her hands were placed firmly on her hips, and her face wore a look of disgust. She felt a chill. What was wrong with Michelle McCool? Wasn't the fact that they'd gotten in trouble and just received a warning from the boss enough to end this? Apparently not.
She just kept walking without issuing a response. She shuddered at the thought of Michelle doing something else that could possibly cost her her job. Worse still, Torrie could end up back... there. She couldn't and wouldn't allow that to happen.
As she made her way outside, a voice startled her off to the left. Someone just so happened to be standing just beyond the door she'd exited.
"Hey, Torrie."
She pressed a hand to her chest, relieved when she saw Jeff Hardy standing there. If it had been some crazed fan instead, like that last time... She pushed the terrifying memory from her mind and smiled.
"Hi, Jeff... I'm surprised you're still here."
"Actually," the young man said, "and I hope you don't mind - I was waitin' for you."
"Really?" Torrie eyed him, dumbstruck.
"Yup." He hesitated, studying her for a moment. She looked a little on edge, and he sensed something more had happened to her since her fight with Michelle McCool. "I was wonderin'... Would you like to go grab a cup of coffee or somethin'?"
The blonde eyed him with surprise. Well, Jeff Hardy had always been one who was full of surprises. It was odd that he was taking a sudden interest in her lately. Still, he'd been so nice to her recently, while everyone else had basically given her the cold shoulder.
"Sure, Jeff," she replied. She smiled warmly at the rainbow-haired daredevil. "I think I'd like that."
"Great," he said, walking alongside her, his bag in tow as he slung it over his shoulder. "It'll be nice to talk to someone normal for a change," he remarked.
Torrie would have laughed at his comment, but she was so taken aback by it. She was probably one of the last people in the company anyone would think of as 'normal,' considering the fact that a mere three months earlier, she had been locked away in a mental institution against her will and while she was one-hundred percent sane, but in one nonetheless.
"We'll have to take your car," Jeff announced. "I got a ride with my brother tonight."
"Okay."
A few minutes later, they were in Torrie's rental, about to pull away. As the platinum blonde shifted into gear, her gaze caught sight of Michelle and Mark Calloway several yards away. They were pulling matching wheeled suitcases along, apparently heading for their own vehicle. She couldn't help but scowl. She had no problem whatsoever with Mark, but his girlfriend was a different story.
"It's a shame, ain't it?" she heard the younger Hardy suddenly ask.
She turned to face him.
"What is?"
"That," Jeff said with a gesture of his hand in the direction of the couple. "She's totally usin' him for his money and power. Why else would she be pushed as SmackDown's 'number one' diva?"
"Because she's a good wrestler?" Torrie had to wonder why she was actually defending the bitch. McCool had gone out of her way to make her life miserable, even before her 'hiatus.'
The young man chuckled as she pulled out of the parking lot and steered onto the street.
"You're a fascinatin' woman, Torrie Wilson."
She shifted her eyes in his direction to see an amused expression playing on his face. After a beat, she asked, "What do you mean?"
"Well," he said, directly facing her as she drove, "here you are, with the perfect opportunity to agree with me, but instead, you're actually payin' your worst enemy a compliment." He laughed again. "I like that, it's admirable. You can see the good in even the lowest forms of life."
The blonde felt as though tiny elves were pulling at the corners of her mouth. She couldn't help but laugh at what he'd just said. She let it out, nearly getting overcome by a fit of giggles.
Jeff grinned. He liked her, too. In fact, he found Torrie Wilson absolutely infectious.