Notes: This is a flashback chapter.

Seth entered the arena through the back entrance. He shook his head thinking about how it was just last night he had won the Intercontinental title. He had become a Grand Slam Champion just like Dean and Roman had.

He was more than a little surprised when he saw AJ Styles standing in the back talking to Daniel Bryan. They were part of the Smackdown roster. What were they doing at RAW? Had the draft happened already? He was pretty sure it wasn't until next week. This was the night that NXT stars popped up.

He really did a double take when he saw Sami Zayn standing there. now he knew for sure the man had been fired. He shouldn't be there. Did he wander into the wrong venue tonight?

He didn't give it much thought as he did see more of the RAW roster backstage. He went to his assigned locker room and found Roman sitting there with his cousins the Usos. Naomi was standing behind him rubbing his back.

"What's going on? Is the draft happening tonight and I wasn't told?"

Roman looked up at Seth and the tears streaming down the older man's face made the color drain out of Seth's face. "Is it Kit Kat?" he asked thinking of Roman's little cousin who had a serious illness.

"Seth you might want to sit down." Jimmy said grabbing a folding chair.

"What's going on?" he asked as he nervously sat down in the chair.

"Dean's dead."

"What do you mean dead?" Seth asked sure he had to have heard wrong. His friend was okay. That's what Renee told him last week. She said he wasn't going to be at WrestleMania weekend after all because his arm wasn't heeling right and he might need another surgery but she didn't seem too worried.

He hadn't had time to talk to her during WrestleMania week as there were a lot of different events to attend.

"I don't know," Roman said quietly. "Galina called me and said she saw a tweet. Vince called Renee and confirmed it. She never called anyone. Apparently Sherer and Meltzer heard about it from someone and tweeted it."

"So, no one knows for sure?" Seth asked. He knew he was grasping for straws but he didn't think this could be remotely possible.

"Oh, here you are." A voice said from the doorway. They turned to see Kurt Angle standing there. His eyes looked red from crying. "I wanted to tell you two first. I just talked to Stephanie who finally heard from Renee. Apparently, Dean had a staph infection in his elbow. By the time they found it, it had spread to his blood."

Seth was really glad that he was sitting in a chair. Roman let out a sob. Seth couldn't look at Roman. While Seth considered Dean a close friend, Dean was Roman's best friend and vice versa. They had a bond that he had tried to replicate with Roman last year but things never mended after 2014. Same with Dean.

"Usos and Naomi, you guys are welcome to stay for the show. I think AJ and Bryan may stay. AJ wants to say something if we do testimonials."

"I bet he would," Seth muttered under his breath.

"He said he respects Dean. Anyway, Stephanie is still trying to figure out how to do the show. We got guys and girls debuting but we want to do something for Dean." He looked at his watch. "I gotta go." He left the locker room.

The locker room was silent. No one knew what to say.