Love me, love my dog. Wasn't that how the saying went?
Seth wasn't claiming to be in love with Roman, it was far too soon for that, but he was very definitely in like with him, and more than keen to see what direction things between them were headed in.
Which was why he was sitting in the parking lot outside Roman's apartment, psyching himself up for an unannounced visit, armed with a six pack of beer, a large pizza and a squeaky toy for Roman's mysterious puppy Mojo.
Mysterious because Roman had met him at the door the handful of times he'd picked him up here, and never once had he invited him in when he dropped him off, claiming not to want to disturb his precious pooch. For being so seemingly devoted to the animal, Roman never had any photos of him on his phone or Facebook, which was odd. And then there was Dean, who never ever made any mention of his roommate's dog. He was a bit of a mysterious character himself though, so maybe he just didn't think it was his place to talk about someone else's pet.
Seth could admit to himself that a tiny little part of this surprise was to put his mind at ease and make sure that Roman wasn't feeding him some bizarre lie. That and he simply wanted to spend some more time with Roman. If some of that time was spent getting naked and sweaty, even better, and there was a pretty reasonable chance of that happening. Earlier in the gym he'd been chatting to Dean about his plans for the free weekend they had coming up, asked if he wanted to grab a beer, but he'd been quick to reply that he was busy all night, so if he was out, then that must mean that Roman was home alone.
Giving himself a little shake to regain his focus, he grabbed his supplies and got out of the car, reaching Roman's door in a matter of seconds. Rearranging his burdens to free a hand, he rapped sharply on the door, the background sounds of life coming to an abrupt halt on the other side of it.
He heard Roman's unmistakable voice commanding 'Stay!' before the door was opened partway and his dark head appeared in the gap, surprise clear on his face when he spied Seth.
"S..Seth? What you doing here? Did we have a date or someth…."
His voice tailed off as he noticed the beer and pizza box. Determined not to let the strange reaction faze him, Seth smiled brightly and shrugged.
"No, but since we have the day off tomorrow and Dean's busy, I thought we could maybe hang. Indulge ourselves a little."
His raised eyebrow hinted that he meant more than just the junk food and booze. A strange look came over Roman's face, intrigue and interest and something else Seth couldn't quite put his finger on, however he still made no move to allow Seth into his home.
"Ah. Hang on just one second will you?"
With that he shut the door.
Leaning in, Seth could hear him talking, but who to? Dean was out, leaving only the dog, but there was no way he was asking his pet's permission to allow a guest. Listening out for Roman approaching the door again, he definitely heard an 'are you really sure?' though, followed by an affirmative sounding yip.
He moved back just in time for the door to be opened wide, a now slightly nervous looking Roman beckoning him in. Seth found it sort of cute that he was so concerned for his puppy. Handing Roman the six pack as he stepped over the threshold, he reached into the pocket of his hoodie and pulled out his peace offering for Mojo.
"Don't worry, I haven't forgotten you have a puppy. See, I come bearing gifts. Where is the little guy?"
He gave the rubber chicken he was holding a few squeezes, scanning round the room for any signs of the mystery pet.
Afterwards, Roman would always say he wasn't sure what hit the floor faster, Seth's jaw or the pizza, but gravity claimed them both as Mojo poked an inquisitive nose round the side of the sofa and slowly padded over to rest against his master's feet.
Seth looked on still in shock as Roman crouched down and ruffled his puppy's hair. Hair, not fur. Hair.
"This is my Mojo. Don't worry he won't bite, he's a good boy aren't you Mojo? Yes you are, you're a good boy for Daddy."
His master's praise and attention had the same effect on Mojo as Seth had seen countless times before with dogs and their owners. Except he'd never seen a puppy quite like this before. A six foot and change puppy with blond hair, blue eyes and a day job as a professional wrestler. A puppy who he'd gone out for beers with, who he'd contemplated asking out before Roman beat him to it and invited him on a date instead.
In short, he'd never seen a puppy like Dean before.
Buying himself some time, he rescued the pizza box from where it landed, mercifully flat, and looked around for a safe place to set it down. Roman appeared at his side, taking it from him, a slightly worried look apparent on his face.
"Seth...are you ok? Is this…"
He stopped mid sentence, handing the box back to Seth as Mojo made his way on all fours to the right hand side of the doorway, sitting perfectly when he got there. Roman immediately went to him, ducking down to remove the silver coloured chainmail collar Seth only now realised he was wearing alongside his tank top and shorts.
Dean stood to his full height and stretched out.
"Can I speak to him Daddy?"
"Go ahead Dean, floor's all yours. You know what to do when you're ready."
Turning to Seth, he smiled reassuringly, his dimples showing.
"Hey."
"Hey."
"You probably have a couple of questions."
"Could say that. Are you two...are you guys together?"
"Ro...Ro...he looks after me...it's not. We're not boyfriends. It's hard to explain."
"Sometimes Dean needs different things from me Seth, if I can give him them, then I will."
"And this? The puppy thing? Mojo?"
"Sometimes that's what I need. It makes me feel right, Daddy makes me feel right."
Looking on at him now, it was clear to Seth that the Dean in front of him was a far more settled and relaxed man than the one he knew from work. Roman too seemed somehow more complete and at ease than he'd seen him before.
"So what about me? I thought I was dating a single guy with a roommate and a dog, not a kinda taken guy whose roommate is his dog. I thought we might have had something Ro."
"But you do, I mean you could still have. We had talked about this, Daddy was going to tell you about all of it. He really likes you."
Seth could see the excited puppy underneath the surface, just visible in the way Dean bounced on his feet as the words spilled out. He watched, fascinated as Roman placed a hand on the back of his neck, settling him instantly. Such power without a word. He would be lying to himself if he said he wasn't a little turned on by it.
"Dean's right, I do like you Seth, but he's part of the package too. Love me, love my dog."
He gave a small chuckle, unaware his words echoed Seth's own thoughts earlier.
"Can you give this a try? I'd like you to, we'd like you to, but if you can't, if it's too weird, it's ok. I understand. You're the only other person who knows about this though so if I ever hear anything about Dean, I'll be coming for you."
"You don't expect me to be a pet too do you? I don't think that's my thing."
"Just because it's Dean's doesn't mean it has to be yours, we can just try dating. You and me, the guy with the roommate and the puppy. Want to give it a shot?"
Seth looked again at the two men in front of him and wondered how it would feel to have Roman's hand touching him like that, he needed to find out.
"Ok."
"Ok then, how about we start with that pizza before it's stone cold. Dean, you joining us?"
"No thank you Daddy."
He sat back down in his spot beside the door, Roman replacing his collar straight away and kissing the top of his head before joining Seth and leading him to the sofa.
The pizza box was no sooner opened than Seth felt something brush against his leg. Glancing down, he saw Mojo, pawing at his shin. He looked to Roman for an explanation.
"He's only a puppy Seth. You showed him a toy earlier and he's still looking for it."
"What? Oh right!"
He held out the squeaky chicken to Mojo, who licked his hand, then took it from him with his teeth and promptly dropped it to the floor where he began delightedly bashing it with his forepaws.
"He licked me!"
"I think he likes you."
Sliding a hand round the back of Seth's neck, Roman pulled him in closer, licking a broad stripe up the long column of his throat, murmuring into his ear.
"I think I like you too."