"What was the name of that woman you used to date five years ago? The one with that crazy ex boyfriend from college who always moved in and out of her life?" Dean asked.
"Iris," Roman answered. "She broke my heart many times, and I still find myself missing her sometimes, even after all these years."
"Yeah, about that," Dean said.
"What?" Roman asked.
"She's coming our way, and she doesn't look too good," Dean said.

They were sitting on a stone railing, enjoying the sun and an iced coffee each. Dean was looking past Roman, and Roman turned his head after Dean's last words. As Dean had said, Iris was moving towards them, but it didn't look like she had spotted them. She was just walking in that direction, and Dean had been right. She didn't look too good. Her bottom lip was split, and dried blood was on her chin. People stared as she passed, but she continued forward. Roman stood up with a sigh and blocked her path.

"Do you mind?" She asked.
"Actually I do," he answered.
"Roman?" She looked up at his face. "Wow, hi. It's been a while."

Those deep green eyes had been on his mind many times over the years. He never thought he'd actually look into them again. She had dyed her hair a darker brown, but it looked good on her.

"Five years," he reminded her.
"That long, huh?" She said. "You look good though."
"You don't," he gently grabbed her chin to inspect the damage. "What happened?"
"Just a random fight. I'm good," she said.
"Good," he sighed. "Still using that word to cover up your feelings?"

She gave him a hard look that clearly said it was none of his business. Just like it was never any of his business either, back when it actually was his business. They had been together a little over a year, and he had tried so hard with her. Back then he knew she was the one, but she constantly pushed him away. She never wanted to talk about anything deep, and she seemed to think that whatever pain was given to her, she deserved.

Most pain came from that crazy ex who didn't quite understand that he was an ex. He never harassed Roman or came around his house, but he was always there, lurking in the shadows, making her talk to him and keep him in her life. Roman never even met the guy. He suspected she might even have cheated with her ex, but he wasn't sure.

In the end he had let her go. Wounded and heartbroken. He had committed to work and never dated another woman. One night stands was one thing, and he had a lot of those, but a relationship was something he never wanted again. Not as long as he was still hurting. Seeing her again ripped open all the old wounds, and once again he just wanted to protect her and hold her close.

"Look, I still live in that same house. It's not too far from here. Let's go there and get you cleaned up," he said.
"Iced coffee?" She pointed at his plastic cup.
"Yeah," he smiled.
"Thanks," she took the cup from him. "Let's go."

The iced coffee seemed like a small sacrifice to make her go with him. He could always go back and buy another, but if he let her go now, he might not ever see her again. Dean followed behind without a word. His normally chatty friend had nothing to say in that moment.

They arrived to Roman's house 10 minutes later, and she walked out to the bathroom to clean up her lip, and get the dried blood off her chin. Someone cleared their throat, and she looked towards the door to see Dean standing there with his arms crossed.

"How have you been, Dean?" She asked.
"Good, good," he answered. "It took some time though to finally get Roman to leave his house after you, but I didn't give up on him unlike others."
"He left me," she reminded him.
"And why was that again?" He asked. "Oh right, Dolph. What was his last name? Zigzag? Zodiac?"
"Ziggler," she said.
"Ziggler. Right," he said.
"What do you want from me?" She sighed.
"Don't hurt him again," he said.
"Don't worry, I'm not planning on staying," she said.

Roman appeared next to Dean, and both of them stopped their conversation.

"I've prepared lunch," he said.
"I'm not staying," she said.
"Please, Iris. It's just lunch," he said.

She looked in his eyes, and they were pleading with her to stay. So much sadness was inside them, but there was also a touch of hope. She never could say no to those eyes.

"Fine," she sighed. "Lunch."
"Great," he flashed her a big smile.

He walked back to the kitchen, and she walked over to Dean.

"A little help would have been nice," she said lowly.
"I didn't say you couldn't stay. I said you couldn't hurt him again," he said. "He never got over you. Five fucking years, and you're still the one for him, so at least have the decency to be kind to him right now."
"Yeah, sure," she said.
"I've always liked you, Iris," he grabbed her arm gently. "You're not a bad person. Dolph was the one fucking with your mind, and that made you fuck with Roman's mind, but that's all in the past."
"Yeah, in the past," she swallowed. "Lunch, Dean."

He let go of her arm, and they walked out in the kitchen where Roman had set the table for all three of them. It didn't go unnoticed to Dean that Roman seemed a bit nervous and also weirdly hopeful by having her there. He could only hope his best friend wouldn't end up heartbroken again.

It was mostly Roman and Dean talking over the table while they ate lunch. She answered when asked, but she tried not to say too much. She finished eating fast and stood up. She rinsed her plate with water, and put it in the dishwasher.

"This was nice, lunch and catching up with you, but I really gotta go," she said.
"Where do you live these days?" Roman asked.

There was a small pause while she thought it through. A small pause, but long enough for the guys to know something wasn't right.

"I'm in between homes right now, but I'm crashing with a friend," she said.

She was lying. With all the pain she brought back in the days, she used to lie a lot too. Roman could always tell her lies from truths.

"Stay," he said.
"I can't," she said.
"Iris," he stood up. "Please, stay. Just for tonight."
"I'm not fucking you," she said.
"I'm not asking you to," he sighed. "I'll make up the couch for you."

She looked at Dean who nodded in return. He had meant what he said in the bathroom. She was allowed to be around Roman as long as she didn't hurt him.

"No personal questions," she looked at Roman again. "No diving into the past and reliving old memories."
"We can watch movies or play video games. Anything you want," he said.
"And you're making pasta for dinner," she said.

He laughed at that demand. She used to love his creamy pasta dish.

"We gotta go shopping first then, but sure, I'll make that for you," he said.
"Okay. One night," she nodded. "Do you have any painkillers? My head hurts."
"Same cabinet as always," he pointed.

She took out the bottle and swallowed one of the pills. She didn't notice Roman moving up behind her until she felt his hand on the back of her head. She hissed in pain as he gently tried running his fingers through her hair.

"You got dried blood in your hair. I couldn't see it for the dark colour," he said.
"It's not my blood. I head-butted the other person in the fight. I totally won," she said.

He wanted to ask so badly, especially since the head-butt had been from the back of her head, but he had just agreed to no personal questions. Instead he placed his hands on her shoulders, and leaned his head down next to hers. She felt his lips close to her ear, and a shiver ran through her body. He still had that effect on her.

"Take a shower," he said.

She went back to the bathroom, and as soon as the door closed behind her, Roman and Dean looked at each other.

"Are you sure you know what you're doing?" Dean asked.
"Not a clue," Roman answered.