Shane Helms sat in the car feeling more anxious than he had ever felt in his life while he waited for his three friends, Matt & Jeff Hardy and Amy Dumas, to come out of McDonalds. Shane, along with the trio, had just arrived to Tacoma, Washington from North Carolina for his first show as a WCW Superstar in the WWF. It was enough that he hadn't really wrestled other than Indy shows in North Carolina but that was nothing compared to the fact that he would be wrestling in a WWF ring. Something that had been a dream of his for as long as he could remember. He could not swallow the fact that it was happening to him...and so fast.

Shane and his long-time girlfriend reccenty decided to see other people since they knew that his new schedule would consume too much of his time. They had been together for a little over a year but had known each other forever. When they decided to break up, Shane felt awful since he felt he kind of had to choose between two things he deseprately loved. Even though he felt that way, the two continued to be friends, which kept them pretty content. She continued to be as supportive as she was before and it was as if they had never broken up.

Despite those feelings, Shane always felt a little envious of Matt and Amy's relationship. They were the perfect couple to him. They exemplified real love in his eyes. That was something he was still searching for. Matt, Jeff, Amy and even Shannon had found it. He was the only one still looking for it. He looked really forward to the day that his search would finally be over. He looked up when he saw Matt, Jeff and Amy get into the car, each eating out of their bags filled with food.

"It took y'all long enough." Shane said as he moved over so Jeff could sit in the backseat with him.

"We weren't in there that long." Amy replied before she tossed Shane his food.

"So...are you excited about tonight?" Matt asked as he drove off to the arena, which was fiive minutes away.

"I've never felt so much anticipation in my life. I can't describe it, dude. I feel like I can die a happy man now because I know I'm gonna actually be a part of a WWF show tonight. Y'all know how long I've wanted this and now, it's here. I feel...I'm just happy, man." Shane said before he took a huge bite out of his hamburger.

"Yeah, I can remember the first show I went to under WWF contract. I was pretty anxious myself." Amy said.

"Are you kidding me? Shane, this girl said 'Are we there yet' for five hours straight. The way she was acting was so adorable but it was driving me and Matt crazy. I wanted to throw her out the car after spending five minutes with her." Jeff said.

"Leave me alone, I was just...excited. Didn't you act the same way when you & Matt left Cameron for your first show?" Amy asked.

"Wow, that was all the way back in 1994. We didn't know either of you then. But yeah, we were real excited just knowing that we would be contributing to a WWF show. That was a goal for us and we achieved it. We felt great." Matt said.

"Keep your eyes on the road, sweetie. Yeah, we know how you feel, Shane. When you're nervous, that means you care. Stephanie told me that one time. It takes awhile to get used to, being a part of the WWF. It took me a mighty long time to adjust to but it still feels unreal at times, you know. I wonder who you're gonna wrestle tonight though." Amy said as she ate her fries.

"I hope it's a good match, I want to leave the right first impression. Man, how do y'all do it so naturally knowing that Vince McMahon or Jim Ross are back there watching your every move? I don't want to screw up and hear them say, 'See, he can't handle it.' I'd cry if they told me that." Shane said while he sipped on his drink.

"You're gonna do good, man. It's okay being nervous but don't let it get the best of you. If you think you're gonna screw up, you'll screw up." Jeff replied.

Shane sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. He looked out the window as Matt pulled into the arena. So many things were running throught his mind. He thought about being in the same room as the Undertaker and Stone Cold. He thought about shaking Vince McMahon's hand. He thought about how he would feel walking down the ramp knowing that none of the WWF fans would know who the hell he was. Matt arrived to the arena and before they got out, everyone looked at Shane.

"You ready, Shane?" Matt asked.

"Yeah, let's do this." Shane replied.

***********

Shane felt no kind of nostalgia as he walked down the crowded halls. Backstage, there was nothing but a maze of crates, sets, cameras, tables, chairs, and cables. There were a lot of people walking around and a lot of activity was going on. Some were just sitting on crates or leaning on the wall talking to somebody and there are television screens every ten feet or so playing various pieces of matches. Everyone backstage was at work. Everybody Shane saw was busy putting something together for the show. Of course, some of the guys are going over their matches and filming vignettes and interviews (those "live" interviews that air during Raw) and the production crew members are running around with clipboards and headsets on.

Shane gasped and his insides froze as he saw Kurt Angle walking towards him playing around with his cell phone. He was wearing blue sweat pants and a white Nike t-shirt. Shane tried to smile as Kurt looked up at him. They both stood there looking at each other while various people continued to walk by them.

"Shane Helms...right?" Kurt asked.

Shane looked at him like he was crazy. He couldn't believe that Kurt Angle of all people actually knew who he was. He felt kind of dizzy at that moment. This moment was just surreal. He wished he had a camera. He tried his best to be professional while he attempted to answer his question.

"Yeah, I can't believe you know who I am." Shane laughed.

"I remember you. I watched WCW before the WWF bought it. I'm Kurt Angle, nice to meet you." Kurt shook Shane's hand.

"I'm...well, you said you knew me. It's nice to meet you too. I'm a huge fan. You are an amazing wrestler. Guys like myself really look up to you, man. I'm sorry if I sound corny."

"No, it's alright. I totally understand. You're a great worker, Shane. I'm very familar with you. Matt and Jeff bring their OMEGA tapes to the shows sometimes and we watch you. Aren't you the WCW Cruiserweight Champion?"

"Yeah, I was just informed that I would be losing it to Billy Kidman tonight."

"I know how you feel. When they say you have to drop your title to someone else, it really sucks. You'll get used to winning and losing titles in this business but it's a great feeling when you have a belt around your waist, you know."

"Well, this belt was the first major one I've really had in my career. I've had for a couple of months now. I knew the day was coming though."

"To tell you the truth, there's nothing better han going out there and putting on a great match knowing you had those people on the edge of their seats. That's how I look at it, as long as I perform well and do the right things. Whether I have the title or not, I see myself getting more popular. That's the most important thing. Look at The Rock. Even when he doesn't have the title, he's as popular as ever. He doesn't need it. Triple H, Austin, Undertaker, they're always going to be on top regardless of if they have a title or not."

"Whoa, I never thought about it like that. I appreciate the words of wisdom, Kurt. They mean a lot considering that this my first night."

"Yeah, I know, I've been there. We'll be back here watching you on the monitor. Good luck, man."

"Thanks, I appreciate that, Kurt. You take care." Shane shook his hand one last time before walking off to find Kidman so that they could discuss their match for later on this evening.

**Later**

It had been a wonderful day for Shane. He had met Kurt Angle, Stone Cold, Undertaker, Chris Jericho, X Pac and so many more people that he looked up to. They all had offered him plenty words of encouragement and those words paid off tremendously because Shane wasn't as nervous as he was before. He & Kidman had a great match planned, he did his pre-match rituals but one thing was missing...he had to talk Amy.

He still didn't know where all the locker rooms were located. He had been all over the place looking for her. The reason they had to talk was because she made him promise her that he would talk to her before his match. He knew what would happen if he didn't fufill his promise. He sighed a breath of relief as he found the door with a sign that read "Women's Locker Room. Knock Please." He rose his hand to knock on the door when Nora Greenwald (a.k.a. Molly Holly) came out of the room.

"Shane...is that you?" Nora smiled.

"Oh, my goodness. Nora?"

"Shane!" Nora said as they embraced.

"You're Molly Holly? Oh, man. How you been?"

"I'm doing just fine. It's good to see you again. So they called you to be a part of this Invasion thing too, huh?"

"Yeah, you know I was cool with it. I was psyched when they asked me. I called my mom, dad, sister, uncles, aunts, cousins and anybody else's phone number I had at the time. I was so happy."

"Well, the Invasion thing has been pretty cool aside from the locker room being so crowded but I don't mind you being here!"

Shane was knocked off his feet by how beautiful Nora was and how sexier she had become since he had last seen her. She had her hair down and she was wearing some very tight blue jeans and a red shirt with glitter. Her smile seemed to lighten up the whole arena. Shane never acknowledged those feelings before. Back when Nora was in WCW, she & Shane were good friends. They traveled together quite often back then. With Nora's schedule, they weren't able to keep in touch when she left for the WWF. He missed her terribly for awhile so it was very refreshing for him to see her again.

"So where are you headed, Shane?"

"Well, I'm about to go face Kidman but I promised Amy I would talk to her first."

"Oh, you can go on in. She's in there brushing her hair. I'll see you after your match?"

"No doubt, I'll see you before I leave."

"Alright, bye, Shane." Nora walked off as Shane walked in the women's locker room.

"Hey there." Amy said as she saw Shane walking towards her.

"Damn, she's even more fine in person."

"Uh...I said hello."

"When did she become so sexy?"

"Do you even know I'm alive?"

"I wonder if she has a boyfriend."

"I'm leaving the room now."

"Oh, what's up, Amy? I didn't see you come in."

"I've been in here the whole...who were you just talking about?"

"Nora." Shane took the brush out of Amy's hand and started to brush her hair."

"It sounds to me you like her."

"No, Amy. I think she's a dirty, disgusting, brutal, skanky, bottom-feeding trashbag ho."

"You're being sarcastic!"

"I was just saying that she was very hot and um...you know how I am around hot girls." Shane smiled.

He kindly handed the brush back to Amy and walked to the door while Amy looked at him as if he was dumb. Amy knew the look that was in Shane's eyes. He had intentions to do something but Amy couldn't quite figure out what it was. She just hoped that it wouldn't eventually be his downfall like they had been in the past.

Next Part