Amy gazed at Adam with wonder, a soft smile on her face.  She knew that the blond man had wanted to take care of Matt Hardy for her - be her hero - after her ex had hurled undeserved insults at her moments earlier.  She appreciated him so very much for not only the gesture, but for himself as well.

Adam was currently rummaging through a garment bag for his red trenchcoat to wear to the ring - to go along with his red tights.  The redhead watched him intently, and because his back was to her, he didn't notice.

A myriad of pleasant feelings went through Amy as she continued to study him.  She felt good with Adam, and not for the first time, she realized that when they were together, she felt safe and secure.  He made her feel good about herself, which was something Matt hadn't accomplished - or even attempted to do - in so long.  The blond man made her feel important, and he always validated her feelings.

"Okay, now I'm ready for my match," Adam said with a smile as he turned toward her, the trenchcoat in hand.  "Too bad you won't be accompanying me to the ring."

"Yeah..."  According the Stephanie, the redhead would begin coming to the ring with him starting the next SmackDown.  The brunette had promised the tall Canadian his match with Matt Hardy - who was also going by the nickname "Mattitude."

Adam laid his trenchcoat across the back of a nearby chair, then came over to stand near the diva.

"Are you okay?"  After the scene out in the hall, he worried about her.

"I'm fine," she replied as she gazed up him, a tiny smile forming on her lips.  She really was - as strange as she found it, the redhead realized that whatever feelings she'd once held for the elder Hardy, they were now gone.  It was odd - she'd never experienced something like this before.

Adam's green eyes sparkled as he continued to gaze at her.  He wondered what would happen if he told her how he really felt about her.  As he'd thought the morning after she'd come to his hotel room crying after finding Matt with Torrie, she seemed to be looking at him a bit differently.  But her breakup was still so fresh...

"Hey, guys..."  Rey Mysterio's voice suddenly interrupted his thoughts.  He looked up to see the small man and Billy Kidman stepping into the room.

Amy turned around, running a hand through her red hair as she smiled at the two men.  Half of her was sorry the two former WCW stars had interrupted, but half of her was relieved.  She suddenly felt the need to seek out Dawn Marie for some more girl talk and friendly advice.

"Well, I'll be going now," Amy said, turning back to the tall, handsome blond.  "See you later."

"Okay," he said softly, his gaze on her still intense.  "Later, Ames."

*

Amy twisted the knob, pushing the door open partway and stuck her head into the locker room.

"Hey...mind a little company?"

"Oh, no, of course not," Dawn Marie cried with a smile.  "Come on in."

The redhead entered the women's locker room, relieved that Dawn was alone at the moment.  She really wouldn't have minded if Nidia had been there as well, but Torrie Wilson was a different story.

"You look like you have some big news for me," the brunette surmised as she took in the smile on her friend's face, the sparkle in her hazel eyes.  "Did you and Adam just have your first kiss?"

"No," Amy replied, unable to stop the tiny blush that spread across her face.

"Aren't you the cutest!  You're blushing, girl!"  Dawn Marie burst into a near-fit of girlish giggles.

"Yeah, yeah...laugh it up," the other diva muttered.  "But you were right about one thing - I do have big news..."  As Dawn eyed her speculatively, she went on.  "...I'm leaving RAW and coming to SmackDown!"

"Oh!  Really?  That's great!"  But then, the brunette's smile vanished.  "But you can't wrestle again for another couple of months..."

"I know," Amy said.  "I'm going to be Edge's manager."

The other diva's brown eyes widened in delight.  "Ooh, you're so lucky!"  Her expression changed to one of disgust as she said, "I would give anything to be put with a guy in my own generation gap - but no, they have to put me in this thoroughly idiotic, humiliating storyline with...Al Wilson!"  Dawn practically choked on the name as it left her lips.

"Ugh...I feel for you," the redhead replied, wrinkling her nose in distaste.  She didn't understand the point of having Torrie Wilson's real-life father on TV, much less having Dawn Marie pretending to seduce the man.  In Amy's opinion, it was a really stupid storyline and a big waste of time - and it certainly didn't deserve as much air-time as it was getting.  The whole point was that Torrie was the babyface, and everyone loved her, and felt sorry for her, and that Dawn Marie was the evil, conniving heel who would stop at nothing to make the blonde's life miserable - even if she had to resort to messing around with the old man that was Torrie's father.

"Eww..." Dawn exclaimed.  "Can you believe they're going to make my storyline even worse in the next couple of weeks?  They're going to have us get 'engaged'!"

"Wonderful!" Amy replied sarcastically.  She thought that if she were ever going to be forced into such a story, or one similar, she would just have to refuse - and possibly kick the ass of the person who'd suggested such a thing.  It was degrading.

Uh oh, she suddenly thought.  They'd better not ever put me in any bikini matches or bikini contests... She truly felt sorry for Dawn, who had to put up with such nonsense at least every other week.

They looked up as the locker room door suddenly opened.  Stephanie stood in the doorway and smiled at Amy before speaking.  "Dawn, can I see you in my office for a minute?"

"Sure..."  She glanced at her best friend for a beat before standing and following the other brunette out into the hallway.

Amy sat there and looked around, wondering when she was going to be allowed to compete in the ring again.  She guessed Stephanie would want to keep her out of action as long as it took, and until Dr. Andrews cleared her.

She looked up as the door opened again, expecting Dawn Marie to be returning, but she was wrong - it was Torrie Wilson.

The blonde woman glanced at her for a split second, a look the cross of surprise and disappointment on her face.  Then, just as quickly, she went to the mirror across from Amy and examined her reflection.

Although she felt nothing but disdain toward Torrie, Amy would have preferred to completely ignore her, but she watched as the blonde pulled a compact from her purse.  The two of them shared the room in silence for a beat until the redhead decided she had to have it out with the woman who had come between her and her former boyfriend.

"You know," she began, startling Torrie enough that the platinum blonde stopped applying powder to her face, "it's a real shame when a woman can't get a man of her own...It's an even bigger shame when she has to resort to stealing someone else's man..."  She couldn't help but think of the lyrics to Madonna's song "Thief of Hearts" as a perfect description of Torrie:

Here she comes
Little miss thinks she can have what she wants
In the blink of an eye...

Here she comes
Little miss black widow
First she spins her web and she's stealing your boyfriend...

Here she comes
Little susie ho-maker
Thinks she'll get respect if she screws it...

Torrie turned around slowly, the compact still in clutched in her left hand.  She stared at the redhead in frozen silence for a beat, then her eyes narrowed.  "You're one to talk about me!  From what I hear from Matt, you're nothing but a two-timing tramp!"

Amy let out a derisive little laugh as she stood up, nearing the other diva ever so slightly.  "I find it very interesting to hear those words coming out of your mouth, Torrie...projecting now, are we?"

"Well," the blonde said cattily, "maybe if you were able to keep your man satisfied, he wouldn't feel the need to look elsewhere!"

The redhead smirked with disbelief as she studied the other woman.  She couldn't believe Torrie had finally gotten enough nerve to talk back to her.  "You are one unbelievable bitch, Torrie Wilson..." she hissed as she crossed her arms under her breasts in an unconsciously hostile reaction.

"How dare you!" the blonde nearly growled, and to Amy's vast surprise, Torrie suddenly leapt upon her.  The two women were suddenly on the floor, rolling around as they battled.

Torrie tried to claw at Amy's face, but the redhead stopped her dead in her tracks with a punch.  That single blow stopped the blonde, who covered her face and began to whimper.  Amy got to her feet and stood up over the other diva.

The worst Torrie had done was to pull her hair - although she had tried to do worse.

"Listen to me, Torrie," Amy spat.  "You couldn't hurt me on your best day, so I would back off if I were you.  And just remember, I went easy on you...I'm not someone you want to mess with - so don't even try me if you know what's good for you..."

As the blonde woman gaped at her, cowering behind the hands up to her face, the redhead turned, spinning on her heel, and left.