Disclaimer: All publicly recognisable characters are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and the plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
Chapter 1
"I love you, Seth," Scarlett whispered as she lay in his arms. Her hands were running through his hair and Seth bent his head to press a kiss to her lips, her nude body arching against him; inviting him to her.
"I love you so much."
~oOo~
Seth Rollins trudged back to the locker room where his things were after SmackDown. His body was sore from the ladder spot he'd taken and he growled at anyone who tried to speak to him. He was exhausted. The dream he'd had last night kept haunting him the entire day and he couldn't get his mind off of it. It had felt too real and Seth had woken up with his heart aching. It was the first time in many years that Seth had curled into a ball and hugged the pillow to his chest, trying to get that pain in his chest to decrease. He could still feel her in his arms and it only made his pain double. But he wouldn't cave into temptation. He wouldn't.
Heading straight for the shower, he turned the water to max heat and jumped in, letting the hot water soothe the aching muscles. The heat made him lethargic and he made quick work of the soap and rinsed before climbing out to dress himself quickly. On his way out of the arena, he bumped into Dean, who was surprisingly very calm.
"What's with that expression?" Seth asked. Dean hummed in response but said nothing. Seth watched his best friend walk in front of him and it clicked in his head.
"Damn. Never thought I'd see the day when you'd be more than happy to get back home," Seth said, ignoring the way his heart pinched painfully.
Ignore the feelings. Shut them away. It was the mantra he kept repeating in his head every time his feelings for Scarlett simmered.
"Is it that obvious?" Dean asked. Seth forced out a laugh and thumped his friend's shoulder.
"Don't worry about it. When are you going back then?"
"Tomorrow morning. What about you? When are you heading back home?" Dean asked him as they stuffed their bags into the trunk of their rental.
"I think I'm going to stick around for a bit," Seth shrugged. Dean stopped what he was doing to look at him, a thoughtful expression on his face.
"Why don't you come with me?" Dean asked. Seth suppressed the groan with difficulty. It was the one question he didn't want Dean to ask him because his resolve was weak. His heart already ached to see Scarlett but at the same time he didn't want to see her.
"You get back to her. I'm staying back to work on some stuff with Hunter and Steph," he lied. Dean looked at him but accepted his words and climbed into the driver's seat. The drive to the hotel was mostly silent, partly because of Seth's exhaustion and partly because he didn't want Dean to bring up Scarlett right now.
"I'll see you Monday then," Dean said to him before he departed to his room and Seth watched his best friend go with a forlorn look on his face. Seth was having a difficult time looking at Dean without feeling guilty. What kind of best friend was he? Falling in love with Scarlett when he knew he could never have her?
Disgust and guilt seemed to be his partners lately and Seth could do nothing but repeat the words: Ignore the feelings. Shut them away, over and over again. He had no business in meddling in Scarlett and Dean's lives and making it complicated.
"Ugh," he said. Dropping his things in the corner of his room, Seth flopped down on the bed and fell asleep. A familiar face plaguing his dreams and giving him the happiness that he could never have when he was awake.
~oOo~
Dean couldn't sleep. He was waking every hour and checking the clock, waiting for the numbers to read 8:00 AM. Groaning after checking his phone at 3:00 AM, Dean dropped his head back on the pillow and stared at the ceiling, huffing in annoyance. He'd been checking in with Esme and she'd assured him that Scarlett was resting. But he wouldn't be at ease until he saw her for himself.
Which would only be possible if the fucking time moves quicker!
Dean sat up and leaned against the headboard, reaching for his phone again. He ignored the time (2:05 AM) and open up his messenger. He typed in a message in the box but hesitated before hitting the send button.
"She's probably asleep right now," he muttered to himself. "I'll disturb her if I message her."
Groaning he erased the message he'd written (I can't wait to see you.) and placed his phone back before he rolled over to stuff his face in the pillow. Lifting his head up after a few seconds, he punched the pillow and lay back down again, shutting his eyes and trying to get some sleep.
The next time he woke, there was very little light streaming in from the small opening in the curtain signifying the break of dawn. His night had been restless and he gave up on trying to sleep for the next few hours, opting to head to the gym to blow off some steam.
When he walked in, he was surprised to find Roman going hard at the punching bag. The Samoan had his headphones on, his dark mane pulled into a low bun, and his face hard with concentration. Dean stared at his best friend and wondered what was causing Roman's body language telling anyone who wanted to approach him to stay away. Deciding to leave him alone as he worked with the punching bag, Dean headed for the treadmill. It was half an hour later that Roman seemed to come out of his little bubble and take off his headphones.
"So who's face was the punching bag acting as?" Dean asked from where he was near the battle rope. Roman whipped around to look at him and Dean raised an eyebrow when he saw the dangerous look on Roman's face before it disappeared.
"Oh. It's you," he said.
"Good morning to you too," Dean said to him as he headed for the weights. Roman followed him to spot, drying himself with the towel. Dean kept a close eye on Roman throughout the rest of his workout, his attitude beginning to annoy him. He was receiving one word answers from Roman every time he asked him anything; he could feel his anger bubbling in the pit of his stomach. Once he was done with the weights, that was when Dean turned to attack.
"Alright, what the fuck is wrong with you?" Dean asked, planting himself firmly in front of Roman.
"What do you mean?"
"You're acting like you've got a cactus shoved up your ass," Dean said simply.
"I'm fine. Now get out of the way," Roman responded. He held his ground and fixed the dark haired man with an icy glare. Roman's gaze turned cold and he returned his glare with one of his own.
"Get out of my way, Ambrose," he growled at him.
"Not until you tell me what your problem is."
The two men stood in the middle of the gym glaring at each other, both alpha-males refusing to look away. The tension was rising and Roman's hands fisted by his sides, the sudden urge to hit something was maddening. They would've hit each other had Seth not walked in and announced that Scarlett was in the hospital.
"WHAT?" The two shouted. The two toned man grinned at them in response and shook his head.
"Sorry. It was the only way I could break up the impending war between you two right now," Seth said, chuckling at them; he was rewarded with two nasty glares.
"I should call her though," Dean said, his anger melting away as he felt a twinge of worry. Even though Seth had made up the lie, he should still check in on her.
"And disturb her? Look at the time man. It's almost 7. Let her sleep, you know she needs it," Seth said shaking his head at him.
"Seth's right. If there was any problem, Esme would've called by now," Roman added. Dean looked at Roman and he waved him off.
"I had an argument with my Dad last night, that's all," Roman said to Dean. Although he would say no more, that was all Dean (and Seth) needed to know about his behaviour. They'd often head him arguing with his father on the phone and each time it would leave Roman in a sour mood. But it was the first time that Dean had been convinced and was preparing himself to receive a blow from Roman.
"Must've been a big fight to make him that angry," Seth said so only Dean could hear as Roman headed towards the exit. The two watched him disappear before Dean helped Seth with the weight training.
"I've never seen that expression on his face though," Dean said.
"What expression?"
"When I came in earlier, he had this expression as if he was ready to…well…he looked about ready to kill someone," Dean said. Seth paused as he reached for the bar and his gaze fixed on Dean.
"Dean, this is Roman we're talking about. He'll become a raging monster once he's angry but I doubt he can hurt anyone," Seth told him. Dean shrugged and Seth continued with the weights while he kept a watchful eye. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get rid of that look that he'd seen on Roman's face earlier. He just couldn't.
~oOo~
Dean wasted no time and headed straight up to Scarlett's room as soon as he returned home, calling out a hasty "I'm home!" to announce his arrival. He didn't bother knocking and pushed open the door to her room, only to freeze in his tracks. She was spread across the bed, her face turned towards him but her eyes shut and her breathing even. The light that was streaming in from the window was dancing across her body and making her scars glitter.
He stumbled towards her, tripping over his feet multiple times before falling to his knees next to her. Reaching up, he brushed the loose strands of hair out of her face. Her eyebrows furrowed and she stirred, brown eyes fluttering open to connect with his.
"Why do you always leave me speechless every time I see you?" He asked her softly, his heart beating loudly in his chest. She gasped and shot up, her arms going around his neck tightly. Dean returned her embrace and he pulled her hair out of the way before pressing a kiss to her neck and burying his nose to inhale her scent. She trembled in his arms and he reveled in the feeling of having her close to himself again.
Dean halted when her trembling got worse and he pulled himself away from her quickly to see a panicked look on her face. Tears were pooling in her eyes and she seemed like she wanted to say something, but she kept opening and closing her mouth. Her eyes were wild and her body was shaking uncontrollably.
"Scar?" He asked her, grabbing her shoulders.
"Someone came into the house, Dean."
Welcome back everyone to Book II! And if you're joining us for the first time, then welcome aboard and please make sure you've read Book I so that you can enjoy the full experience!
I hope you're all ready for the road ahead.
You know the drill, click that "Review" button and leave me your thoughts! :)
- K.
