A/N: Here is another Roman and Mel one shot this one is based on the events of Charmed Lineage episode eleven.
Better Left Unanswered
Roman Nicolae ran his hands over his face to fight off the fatigue he was feeling. His handsome face was hidden underneath the deep circles under his eyes and the two days' worth of beard that he had failed to shave. That was unimportant it just didn't matter right now. His blue eyes were bloodshot and tired looking hell everything about him look tired. But he was a man possessed he had to find out what had happened to him. With an effort he picked up a book from the large oak table in front of him. This never-ending search was getting old he never found out anything and that was not likely to change.
As he opened the book he ignored the deep rumbling in his stomach food was secondary for now and that was something for him he was a chef by trade. Really he didn't even know what he was looking for in all these books he was just looking. He knew why he was looking because he didn't want whoever had gone after him to go after Mel in an attempt to hurt him.
He cast a glance over in the direction of the two young men sitting at the table across from his. Jack and Alan Halliwell both knew more than they were letting on they had been the ones to find him and bring him back home. Yet they couldn't give him a simple answer about what had really happened to him. Every time he asked they would claim future consequences and clam up on him.
The great library at magic school seemed to be failing him for the first time in his life. If he couldn't find the answers he was looking for here he wouldn't find them at all. He couldn't shake the nagging feeling that he was forgetting something. He went through his mental checklist he knew that he wasn't forgetting about work he had the night off in the middle of the week that was something rare for him. And he was reasonably sure that he hadn't left the coffee pot or the stove on at his apartment. That didn't leave him a hell of a lot to work with.
For all he knew he could be forgetting something that he had to next week. No Mel would never let him forget anything it was one of the many things he loved about her. He smiled to himself just thinking about Mel he seriously thought that he was falling in loved with her. She had the ability to make him forget about everything else when he was with her.
He turned back to his book his mind at ease now he knew that if he had anything important to do then she would have reminded him. Out of habit he pulled out his cell phone to check the time. He saw that he had one message from Mel on there with a smile on his face he opened it and read it.
He felt the smile leave his face as he read the message.
Babe don't forget I'm meeting you at your apartment at eight.
Love Mel
He checked the time again it was a quarter past nine he was in so much trouble that it wasn't funny the only thing left for him to do was to go back to his place and face the music. He would have asked Jack or Alan to orb him there but he didn't really want them bearing witness to the fury his girlfriend was going to unleash on him the moment he showed up.
After he packed his bag up with the materials he had brought with him he threw a transportation potion at his feet that would take him back to his apartment. He braced himself for the storm he was about to face. He made a prediction that he was about to face a level five hurricane Mel already in progress. When he heard the potion vial break he only hoped that wasn't a metaphor for his relationship with Mel.
As he had predicted Mel was on his couch waiting for him when he teleported into his apartment the look on her face was anything but pleasant and truthfully he wanted to be anywhere else in the world at the moment. But he had messed up and he knew it the only thing he could do was take what she had to say like a man.
Mel put her hands on her hips and glared at him hatefully. "Roman James Nicolae I can't believe you stood me up. You knew what tonight was and you got lost in doing whatever it was you were doing. If this is what it's going to be like then I don't know if I even want to date you anymore." She said but there was more hurt in her voice than there was anger.
"Mel you have got to believe me I never meant to forget about you I was just trying to figure out what happened to me. I would never do anything to hurt you I don't like knowing that you're hurting because of me I feel horrible about it." Roman pleaded his case trying to wrap his arm around her but she pulled away from him.
Mel never once broke eye contact with him "You obviously don't feel that bad or you would have remembered that tonight is our two month anniversary you even got mom to give you the night off. So I know that you care on some level just not enough to remember. Ro this sick obsession has got to stop."
"Mel I'll stop when I know what happened to me I don't want whoever it was hurting you to get to me." Roman said holding firm to that belief he wouldn't be able to live with himself if anything happened to her.
Mel gave an exasperated sigh and threw her hands up in the air "Roman if you insist on carrying on like this I wish you would at least let me help you."
Roman shook his head stubbornly "No Mel I don't want you getting hurt because of me I know that you think I'm being unreasonable but I'm not. I just don't want to see anything bad happen to you."
"Roman my mother is one of the Charmed Ones I'm pretty sure that I can hold my own with any demon that comes my way. You are just being stubborn." Mel replied she knew stubborn she was a Halliwell she could do stubborn and she refused to be out stubborned by him of all people.
"But Mel I just don't know I need to find some peace of mind it is the only way I will ever be able to move on from this." Roman tried reasoning with her too bad there was just no reasoning with a Halliwell no matter what you said they were always going to win any argument.
Mel got in his face so that hers was just inches from his "Let me tell you something right now I'm going to walk out that door and leave you to think about what you really care about. Because if you care about me you will stop being stupid and you will show that I mean more to you than this little expedition of yours."
"Mel of course I care about you like I said I just need answers." Roman repeated himself and it sounded lame even to him.
Mel shook her head sadly at him "It doesn't work that way Roman I want you to really think about what you care about more me or this insanity. Call me when you have that answer just don't expect me to be waiting around for long." She said stalking out the door and slamming it before she left him alone to his solitude.
The next morning she hadn't been in a much better mood. When he went to kiss her she hadn't returned it with much passion at all. He had messed up and he knew it but this was a little ridiculous. It wasn't as if he had done it on purpose. He didn't have much time to argue his case to her though because Prue had ordered one of her mandatory movie marathons and with the mood she had been in lately it wasn't wise to keep her waiting.
Then after that he hadn't gotten the chance to talk to her because he had been sent to Oz by Jack and Alan that was the least fun he had ever had in his entire life. He had spent the whole day worried about Mel and if she was going to forgive him for this.
When they got back he found out the true meaning of fear when Chris grabbed his side in pain and said that it was because of Mel. No this couldn't be happening to him he couldn't lose her. He cared about her too much to be able to live without her maybe he deserved to have to worry like this about her because of what he had done to her.
He just hoped that she was going to be ok because he needed her to know how truly sorry he was for what happened the night before. Admittedly he didn't deserve her at all she was way too good to him and he was a bonehead at times.
The fear that had gripped his heart didn't lessen any when he learned that Mel had been out of it the whole day because of Ken. And it didn't help matters any when he found out that Ken was the one who had been behind what happened to him.
This was just what he had been afraid of someone trying to get to him by hurting her. To say that he couldn't concentrate at all as they made they way through the abandoned warehouse where Ken had taken her was a bit of an understatement. He found it hard to even breathe. He vowed right then and there if she would just be ok then he would do whatever it took to make it up to her.
Things really weren't looking much better when Henry was called away to help with Mel Roman felt his heart leap into his throat. But he had to get his head in the game or he would be of no use to Mel.
He didn't know that he had been holding his breath until he saw Mel up and walking around. When she saw him standing there she ran right into his waiting arms. He felt his throat constrict and he had to fight the lump that was forming there.
"Listen Mellie I'm Sorry." But that was all that he managed to get out before she put a finger to his lips to silence him and then she pressed her lips to his to make sure he stayed quiet.
"Just don't it doesn't matter anymore you're here now and that's all I care about babe." Mel told him when she pulled away from him.
Holding her in his arms had never felt better. But he couldn't help but blame himself some if she hadn't been mad at him she would have known what Ken was doing to her. Sure he had wanted answers about what happened to him. But if almost loosing Mel was the cost some question were better left unanswered.
After Piper had finished her little tirade he had gone home but just for a little while because he knew that he had to make things right with Mel. He didn't care that she had said it didn't matter he wanted to make it up to her. He had to make it up to her so he threw some things together before going back to the manor. He laid out a picnic for them in the living room. He had to enlist Jack's help to get her down there though.
He felt his breath hitch in his throat when Mel came into the living room wearing a pair of pajama pants and a tank top it wasn't fancy but he found her so incredibly sexy.
Roman looked at Mel "So I know this isn't nothing fancy or anything like that but I wanted to do something I almost lost you tonight and I never want to feel like that again."
Mel looked at his chosen attire of sweat pants and a t-shirt she thought he was the most handsome man in the world. " I think that it is perfect."
Roman pulled her down in the floor with him "Mel I am so sorry about last night I never meant to go all crazy like that I won't let it happen again." he assured her.
"Baby it's over and done with lets just move on." she replied leaning into him.
"Mel I was so afraid that I wasn't going to get a chance to make it up to you." he said sincerely.
"I was scared I wasn't going to get the chance to tell you I forgive you. Because I do forgive you I shouldn't have stayed mad that long." she gushed and he wrapped his arms around her.
"Mel I don't deserve you I was such a bone head." he shook his head at his own stupidity.
"Ro you saved me tonight whether you know it or not." Mel informed him.
Roman looked at her confused "How is that ?" he asked her.
"I was pretty deep in that mind control bullshit but you pulled me out of it." she answered.
"Oh did I now?" he asked smiling at her.
"Yes I was about ready to go along with anything he said until he called me Mellie and then I could see your face and I pulled out of it." she replied smiling up at him.
"What was so important about that?" he asked he had no clue of what meaning that held for her.
"Ro you're the only one that calls me that I don't even let my brothers call me that because from anyone but you I don't like it. But I'm you're Mellie no one else's." she explained to him.
"That is good to know baby girl here I got you something." he said handing her a small square box.
She took the box from him and opened it, it housed a pair of small diamond earrings "Ro thank you so much I love them." She reached up and kissed him.
"I'm glad that you like them Lilly helped me you know I'm not that good on my own with stuff like that." he chuckled.
"Well your sister sure does know her stuff." Mel teased.
The two of them got quiet for a moment and they just sat there staring at each other.
"Ro?" she questioned a little while later.
"What sweetie?" he asked lost in her eyes.
"I think that I'm falling in love with you I have never felt this way before." she told him never once breaking eye contact with him.
"I've never felt like this either just being in the same room with you makes it hard for me to breathe." he said breathlessly.
"Forget what I said a minute ago I do love you." Mel intertwined his fingers with her own. The words were like music to his ears he loved her with all of his heart.
"I love you too Mel don't ever forget that." Roman captured her lips between his own.
They spent the rest of the night exploring each other. But most important of all they had gotten through it and their love was stronger than before.