So, a few quick notes before you start the story.

1. This story was started quite some time ago so if there are references that are a bit outdated, forgive me, but I didn't want to change it just so it would be super current. Hopefully you'll still like it

2. A few quick name things: A lot of different sources spell the name Callaway differently when it comes to The Undertaker but I've settled on Callaway because...well, because I like it. Also, as with any other story I write, I have a weird thing for referring to Triple H as Hunter instead of Paul.

3. The three original characters thus far are Cory (obviously), Viveca Bonham - another WWE Diva who will show up more in the next chapter, and Portia Kelly

There's probably more that I should say but I'm really tired and anxious for everybody to read the story. If you've got any questions, just ask, I don't bite.

Last but not least...Read, Enjoy, & Review!!

Thin Line
Expect the Unexpected...

Chapter 1…

Cory Samms sat nervously in Vince McMahon's office. She straightened her dark green skirt and pulled another Altoid out of her purse, popping it into her mouth. Popping mints was a strange nervous habit she'd developed when she was in high school. It was as if subconsciously she thought super fresh breath could make everything right in the world. At that moment though, if someone told her it was true, she would dump her whole container of altoids right into her mouth and chew like there was no tomorrow. She had exactly 2 minutes and 37 seconds until the most important meeting of her life. It was amazing to think that at only 22 she was already about to have that meeting. Part of her wanted to run into the hall and pull a fire alarm to delay the meeting until she could make sure she was fully prepared but she knew that was a bad idea. And she wasn't sure she could be more prepared. She'd been in the business since she was 17. She'd already worked in ECW during it's last two years. She had experience, she had talent but did she have what Vince McMahon was looking for?

"Ms. Samms?"

Cory nearly jumped out of her seat when she heard the door open.

Stay calm, stay calm, don't say anything stupid..Don't say anything at all, not until he asks you to

Vince walked around to stand in front of her and smiled, extending his hand, "Vince McMahon."

"Cory Samms," she smiled, shaking his hand. "It's an honor, really."

An honor? Way to sound like you're meeting the Queen...

"Well it's very nice to meet you too," he said, sitting at his desk. "Unfortunately I don't have as much time as I originally planned, so let's get right down to business."

"Okay," she said, trying to ignore the tennis ball size lump in her throat.

"I have heard quite a bit about you," he said.

"Is that good or bad?" she laughed.

"Very good," Vince said. "Obviously, your sister Jessica speaks very highly of you."

Cory smiled sheepishly. Her 26 year old half sister Jessica Farrell had been a WWE Diva for 3 years. She'd come into the company as the Jessica Dudley, the younger sister of The Dudley Boyz.

"I asked her not to make a big deal of this," Cory said. "Jessica and I are very close but I don't want you to think that I'm using her to-"

"I know you're not," Vince smiled. "And I wouldn't say that she made a big deal out of it. Though she did make sure that I knew how talented you are and how hard you work...And she wasn't the only one. I've heard from quite a few people that have worked with you that you're a phenomenal worker, always on time. First in the building last out. Paul Heyman is a big supporter of yours."

Cory wasn't sure if she should smile, nod, or just sit there still as a stone. Apparently her brain was going with still as a stone because she couldn't seem to move anything.

"I've seen a lot of tapes and had some of our officials at your last few shows on the independent circuit and I have to say, I am impressed," Vince informed her.

"You are?" Cory's voice squeaked a little. "I mean, thank you, that's..wow...Thank you."

"I'm prepared to make you an offer today," Vince explained, pulling a manila envelope out of his desk and setting it down in front of her.

Cory felt her eyes go wide and she thought it best not to say anything for fear that her voice would sound like she'd just inhaled a bunch of helium.

"I'm not promising you an immediate spot on television," Vince said. "But I am offering you a developmental contract."

"You are?" Cory stared. She could feel the smile spreading across her face.

"You seem surprised," he laughed.

"I am," she laughed.

"What did you think I asked you here for?"
"Ya know what...I didn't think about that," Cory said, feeling like the biggest idiot in the world and a little girl who just got a brand new pony all at the same time.
"Well the offer is here, the contract is here...all you have to do is sign."
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2 Months Later…

Louisville, Kentucky

Damien Ford opened the door of his truck for his girlfriend. After she climbed in and fastened her seatbelt he walked around and climbed into the driver's seat.
"Are you alright?" he asked, noticing that Cory was staring out the window.
"Yup," she nodded, smiling at him. She had just picked up some papers from the OVW office. Damien ran a hand through his dark hair and took a deep breath. He had waited a long time to say what he had to say to her. He looked over at her, thinking about what a lucky man he was. She was gorgeous. Long tanned legs stretched from a pair of denim shorts and she wore a slightly worn NYU t-shirt. He loved the way her light brown hair blew wildly from the wind gushing in through the open window. He smiled, thinking back to the day he met her. She was shopping on Madison Avenue in New York with her friend Helena and her sister Regina. They were coming out of La Perla but the amount of bags in everyone's hands, especially Cory's, made it clear that they had been shopping for quite some time. All three were pretty but Cory was the one who caught his eye. He was with his good friend Eric and they both thought it would be a good idea to help the ladies get their bags into the car. At first, Cory seemed like exactly the type of girl that Damien was attracted to. She looked like a model and came from a family worth more money than a lot of people would see in a lifetime. She was driving a black Cadillac Escalade and by the time they were done loading the bags the back was completely packed. Regina invited Damien and Eric to join the ladies at Bice, an Italian restaurant. Apparently the general manager was a family friend and they would be able to get a table right away. Once they were at the restaurant, Damien was surprised to find that Cory wasn't exactly what he thought. She was a student at NYU majoring in Sociology with a Minor in Finance and when she wasn't in school she was a professional wrestler. When wrestling came up in the conversation it seemed like her eyes lit up. she showed the most passion she had the entire day. That definitely threw Damien for a loop. But what really drove him to pursue her was the fact that, at the end of the night, when he asked for her phone number, she politely informed him that she wasn't interested. After that he'd pursued her relentlessly, even convincing a friend of his, who also happened to be a TA for one of her professors, to completely embarrass her in front of a class by delivering 2 dozen roses to her while she was in the middle of a presentation. That day, she called him and demanded that he stop. He agreed to stop if she would go to dinner with him. And now, a year and a half later she was an almost perfect trophy girlfriend. Except for the whole wrestling thing. She was currently residing in Louisville, Kentucky instead of New York with him, where she needed to be.

"Cory," he said. He'd prepared this speech before he got to Louisville, he just hoped she would take it well.

"Yeah?" Cory asked, ripping at the envelope. "Damn it!!"
"What?" he asked, confused.
"Paper cut," she frowned, looking down at her finger.
"I think we need to have a little talk."
"Good talk or bad talk?" she asked, looking over at him, putting the envelope down on her lap.
"I think it's good," he said, as they stopped at a red light.
"Alright, I'm listening," she waited. "What do we need to talk about?
"Well," he sighed.

Before he could finish, her cell phone started to ring loudly in her purse.
She shot him a quick, apologetic look, "It's Dawn. Can this wait a few minutes?"

Damien nodded, then rolled his eyes when she wasn't looking. Dawn Marie was a close friend of Cory's from her days in ECW. Once again, wrestling came first.

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That Night...

"What?!" John yelled as someone knocked on the door of his hotel room. He had just gotten out of the shower after a 3 hour house show in which he'd been involved in two matches and he was a little too tired for visitors. The knocking returned and he got up out of bed and stalked over to the door, briefly considering throwing on a shirt and then deciding against it. He wished he had just stayed in bed when he found himself looking at his ex girlfriend, Portia Kelly. Dating her was definitely one of the worst decisions he'd ever made. When she first started working with the WWE, things were great. They started seeing each other when she'd only been there a week. Then she started to take the 'diva' title a little too literally. He soon found out that her true nature was to be completely self centered and sometimes just mean for no reason. She found out from a mutual friend that he was planning on breaking up with her so she made a big show of dumping him first, in the airport, in front of everyone they work with. He wasn't upset about the breakup but he was annoyed to say the least. And now, even a year later, he tried to avoid her whenever possible. Apparently, she wasn't taking that same approach.
"Portia what do you want?" he sighed.
"I want to talk to you," she said, walking past him into the room. "Is that so wrong?"
"Isn't it bad enough we have to work together?" he asked.
"John I know you're still bitter over our breakup but you could at least be civil," Portia said, sitting down on his bed.
"I haven't thrown you out yet," he shrugged. "I'd say that's pretty civil considering how most people react to you."
"You're so cute when you're brooding," Portia smiled, her black hair glistening under the light next to the bed.
"This isn't brooding," John said. "This is called being tired and wanting you to leave. There's a big difference."
"That's not very nice John," Portia scolded. "And to think I came here with good intentions."
"You came here to be a pain in my ass," he corrected. "You've done a great job, now get out."
"Do you really want me to leave John?" Portia batted her eyelashes.
"You want an honest answer?" he sighed, walking over and sitting next to her on the bed. She smiled that smile she always had when she thought she had someone wrapped around her finger.
"Of course," she grinned.
"Yes I do," he looked over at her.
She looked thoroughly annoyed, standing up and turning to face him, "I thought you were finally starting to get over what happened between us."

"Guess not," he shrugged, laying back down. "Get the door on your way out."
He closed his eyes and could hear her stomp toward the door, yank it open, and then slam it shut behind her.

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Jessica stared at Mark Callaway, willing him to quit. They were each on their 15th shot. She really didnt want any more but wasn't about to let him win. He always won.
"Ready to quit big man?" she glared.
"I haven't lost yet..why would I give up now?" Mark asked pouring each of them another shot. "Let's go."
"Down the hatch," she smiled, downing shot number 16. The tequila burned down her throat and she smiled to keep from making a face, "Damn that's good."
"You two need help," Viveca Bonham laughed, nursing a glass of champagne.
"Mark's gonna need help when I'm done with him," Jessica said, downing another shot. "Bring on the next round."
"Are they still at this?" Dawn Marie asked as she and Hunter walked up to the table after being sent away for more drinks.
"They wont stop until one of em passes out," Hunter laughed. "That's the rule."
"When I'm done with this one why don't you see how you hold up champ?" Jessica smirked.
"I'll just stay sober thanks Jess," Hunter laughed, sitting down next to her.
"Jessica just give it up," Dawn laughed, standing next to Mark as both contestants downed another shot. "I love ya, but you cant win."
"Yes I can," she insisted, pouring more tequila. Most of the shot ended up on the table and she had to pour again.
"Okay but it's not my turn to make sure either of you get to your rooms safe," Dawn laughed.
"Not my turn either," Viveca piped up.
"It's my turn for Jessica," Hunter laughed.
"Who's got the winner?" Dawn laughed as Mark finally pushed himself away from the table, looking groggy.
"Yes!!" Jessica stood up, downing one last shot. "Alright, who's next?"

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The Next Morning...

Cory walked out of the bathroom, toothbrush hanging out of her mouth. She pulled her hair up into a bun as she walked past Damien's sleeping form, stretched across her bed. She almost tripped over his shoes on her way out into the living room. For some reason, no matter how many times she asked, he never left his shoes at the door. Fortunately, she only had to deal with that when he was visiting. That probably wasn't the nicest way to think about her boyfriend. She loved him. At least...she thought she did. But she wasn't exactly sure that he loved her. He loved the idea of her, sure. He seemed to love how much she was worth. He loved that she was a student at a University like NYU. He loved that she was pretty. But in the week that he'd been in Louisville, the only time he came near OVW was when he took her to pick up those papers. She invited him to a show, he didn't want to go. She invited him out with a few of her friends, he wasn't interested. Wrestling was her biggest passion and to him it seemed to be an annoyance.

"The papers," she stopped walking. She had almost forgotten about them. She was told, in very Mission: Impossible fashion, not to open it until she got a call that morning. She pulled her tootbrush out of her mouth, looking at the clock on the cable box. It was almost noon. But she'd taken a shower and she always blasted music while she was in the shower so there was a possibility...

She rushed over to the phone, snatching it quickly off of it's base. Her heart started beating faster when she saw that there was a message.

20 Minutes Later...

Damien was startled out of his sleep when he heard a loud squeal coming from the living room. Cory's dogs Don Juan and Mr. Belvedere raced out of the room and Damien followed suit, stopping when he spotted Cory up on the couch, dancing around like she'd just scored a game winning touch down.

"Corinne?" he stared at her. "What are you doing?"

She stopped, slightly out of breath, smiling from ear to ear.

"Damien!" she squealed excitedly. "They want me in New York in two days!"

"What?" Damien asked. "Who?"

"Vince McMahon," she said. "The WWE. They want me in New York in two days!"

"For what?"

"What do you think?" she squeaked. "Monday is in two days Damien. What happens on Monday?"

Damien felt himself growing tense, "They want you to start on Monday? Isn't this short notice?"

"Who cares if it's short notice?" Cory said. "They have a storyline for me, they want me on Raw. They could let me know an hour before show time and I'd find a way to get there. Do you have any idea how huge this is?"

"You're sure you wanna do this?" he asked.

Her smile fell and she stared at him, "Are you kidding?"

He couldn't hide his irritation any longer, "Do you even realize that you haven't asked me what I wanted to talk to you about yesterday?"

She shook her head, "I'm sorry, I forgot."

"I want you to move in with me Cory," he said. "I want you to get a real job or, hell, don't work if you want to, you don't need the money. But I want you to move back to-"

"Real job?" her eyes narrowed. "You really wanna go there with me Damien?"

"Corinne, I love you," he said.

"If you loved me, you wouldnt have said what you just said to me," she finally got down off of the couch.

"I just think you need to grow up a little," Damien said.

"Fuck you," she said, brushing past him, bumping his shoulder as she walked by.

"Where are you going?" he took her arm, turning her to face him.

"To pack my stuff," she said. "I've got a flight to New York in two days."

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So, if you want more of the story, let me know, I aim to please