April, 1957
Seth's eyes seemed to wander around the diner effortlessly, like they always did, and his gaze was just about anywhere except on Nikki, who would snap her fingers every once in a while to regain his attention. Nikki, the tall, gorgeous brunette with pretty brown eyes and big breasts, the most popular girl at school, Seth had to remind himself every time he was with her, because quite frankly he didn't want to take her company for granted. Still, he never truly knew why she was always hanging around him.
He wasn't exactly the popular type. He was thin, wore glasses (that he often pushed up from the bridge of his nose), hair dyed two different colors, and spent most of his time at home, studying. Nikki would go out to parties with her friends, and she'd ride in the back of new cars with boys, and she'd go to the beach with her twin sister, and she was way out of his league. But somehow they always ended up in the diner every night, and Seth would always try his best to give her his full attention.
Tonight was a different case, and it was far more difficult for Seth to keep his eyes on the girl in front of him.
Sitting in the opposite side of the restaurant was Dean Ambrose.
Dean Ambrose was something different. Everyone in town knew who he was. Bad kid with a bad reputation and an abusive father and a dead mother and a motorcycle he'd been riding for years. Bad news. Rumors were constantly spread about Dean, which left people wondering and wondering about what was real and what wasn't. Seth had heard lots about him, but at this point, he didn't know what to believe.
Seth had never seen Dean in person until tonight. Yeah, he knew what he looked like, hell, everyone knew what Dean looked like. But for Seth, seeing him up close like this was like looking at a brand new display at a museum.
Dean had this really mean looking face, mostly because he was scowling all the time. Seth thought that maybe if he smiled, he'd look a bit nice. Nearly all the men around here tried to act tough to get the ladies, but he knew not everyone was as rough as they claimed to be. Practically babies in leather jackets. But as much as Seth tried to imagine Dean with a happy expression, the mental image would not come.
Seth sank in his seat and kept his eyes straight ahead, pretending to look at Nikki, but his gaze still studying the boy ahead of him. His dirty blonde hair, his haircut, the leather jacket draped over his lap, his big combat boots, and how strong his jawline looked.
And just below that strong edge of his face were a couple of bruises.
Everyone knew Dean loved to start fights. Dean had taught himself how to fight, how to defend himself. Dean had taught himself how to survive the obstacles he put himself through. So really it wasn't a surprise to Seth that he found so many injuries on Dean's body. The thought of that made Seth shudder, and he looked down, zoning back into reality, Nikki's voice becoming clear again.
"Hello? Are you even listening to me?" she asked, a hint of irritation in her voice as she held her drink in one hand and her other on her hip.
Seth bit his lip and looked at her, thinking, Oh, don't look behind her. Don't look at Dean. He will literally come over and rip your throat out if you stare at him too long. Don't look at Dean. Focus on Nikki. Stop staring. It's creepy. "Yeah, I'm sorry. I'm just. . really tired tonight, I guess."
Nikki half-smiled and gave him a sympathetic look as she took a sip of her soda. "Tired of what? We didn't have school today, you doofus."
"Right." Without thinking, Seth leaned over and looked behind her, staring at Dean once again, losing himself in thought.
Nikki obviously caught that, and she made a face, following Seth's gaze, and her eyes finally found Dean. "Seth," she said in a harsh whisper, eyes wide as she played with her straw. "Don't."
Seth just nodded, eyes still on Dean, and his heart nearly stopped when they made eye contact. His sight went down, and his heart began to race. He tried to look around the diner to make it seem like his eyes had just wandered, but really his eyes only landed on Dean again. Now, I know what you're probably thinking. The whole cliché love at first sight thing, but no. Seth's heart wasn't racing because Dean just looked so glorious in that booth across the room. Seth's heart was racing because he was scared shitless.
But Dean didn't even acknowledge him for more than 5 seconds. Just shrugged it off and finished the last sip of his Coca-Cola bottle. He cleared his throat, and he suddenly stood up, putting on his leather jacket. He was out of the diner faster than Seth could process.
He blinked rapidly, swallowing hard. His gaze returned to Nikki again, and he fidgeted with his fingers. "I'm. . . that was. . sorry."
Nikki looked a bit shocked, or maybe worried, and she leaned down to look up at him. "Are you okay? Maybe you should go home to get some rest."
Seth immediately glanced at her again, and he nodded more enthusiastically than he should've. "Yeah yeah yeah, definitely." In a swift move, he had collected his bag and carelessly thrown it over his shoulder, and he was jogging out the door.
And that, for as long as Seth could remember, was the day he first gained a curiosity, or maybe he would call it an interest, in Dean Ambrose.