damnFireworks - Gosh. Thanks for putting up with the long waits for updates. If you saw on my Tumblr... I plan to have an update every 2 weeks with life permitting so lol. UM.. yeah follow, fav, review and all that good stuff. I really like to hear what you think. :)
Chapter 6 – Play
Nikki just finished getting changed after having showered from her dawn workout. Her hair still soaking wet, she left a trail of water droplets behind her.
Checking down at her comm, it was now 9am.
Walking down the long corridor she had to admit that talking to Roman had her feeling a lot better than she thought she would.
Turning a sharp corner to head into the meeting room, she was surprised to find Dean already there waiting by himself.
She didn't know why she was surprised. Alexa came around informing everyone about the tests this morning and to meet at the assigned room. The brunette diva thought Roman and Brie would at least be there but she knew the Samoan Brute too well. He would take his sweet time on purpose. Force her to talk to Dean but she was afraid.
Hesitating, she wondered about turning back but Dean had looked up and noticed her. She guessed it was too late to avoid him now.
Stepping inside the room, she had a small smile.
"Hey." She said as she sat on the opposite side of the table to him.
"Hey." He replied, not paying too much attention.
"You nervous?" she asked.
Dean shook his head. He was being unusually standoffish with her but she didn't want to push him. Maybe this was the new Dean? She thought.
Dean wasn't sure how to react to Nikki anymore. The way he saw it, every second she refrained from telling him about his past, the longer he lived out a lie. Deciding he wasn't going to beat around the bush and wait for her to confess; he spoke up.
"Actually. I want to talk to you about something."
Tilting her head to the side, she tried to get a read on him. He raised an eyebrow at her expecting her to back down. Shrugging her shoulders at him, the fearless diva gave in.
"Okay, go ahead."
"I want to kno-"
"Hey you two!" Alexa beamed, walking through and taking her seat at the head of the table.
Dean bit his tongue at the sparkly scientist's interruption.
"Hey Lex." Nikki said. She picked a grape off the fruit platter and placed one in her mouth. Her attention back on Dean still waiting for him to say what's on his mind but he waved it off.
"I'll ask later"
"Alright." Eyes back to Alexa, "So, what are the guys doing today?" Nikki questioned.
"Hmm… Just some basic stuff. Blood work, CT scans, have them run the treadmill for a while, strength tests."
Nikki gave him a knowing look. Grinning "sounds like you and Romie are going to have fun" she said in a joking manner.
"Actually, I want you to do the tests as well Nicole"
"What! But I don't have the side effect?"
Dean chuckled at Alexa's announcement. Firing a devilish grin at the woman who sat in front of him. Nikki refused to give him satisfaction.
"Shut it or the car gets it"
Dean raised his hands in surrender.
"It's just a precaution Nikki." Alexa assured.
The feisty Bella nodded.
Roman and Brie finally make it into the meeting room only to be welcomed by Nikki giving the powerhouse the finger. Roman chuckled immediately; however Brie was unimpressed by her twin sister's immature behaviour.
"Apologize Nikki!"
"Don't worry babe" Roman said pulling his earth goddess closer to his side.
"Yeah. He knows exactly what that was for" Nikki pointed out.
Dean gave the stoic man a sideway glance. Part of him felt a pang of jealousy due to the lack of attention he was receiving from the brunette woman in front of him.
"Alright" Alexa called for everybody's attention. "Since we're all here. Let's go over what we'll be doing today" the petit woman smiled.
"There will be four main tests each of you have to complete. A CT Scan, a psych analysis, Blood Test, and then finally a Stamina and Endurance circuit."
Tapping her comm device, she projected a map of the entire base.
"I've sent a map to each of your comm devices. Take note, each of you will be conducting your tests in your own private room except for the stamina and endurance circuit. You will be paired up."
Nikki caught Dean looking at her out of the corner of her eye. When she finally divulged into noticing him, he quickly averted his attention elsewhere. He was being extremely weird this morning the diva thought.
"I have a question" Roman asked.
"Sure"
"Where will you be whilst all this is happening?"
"Like always I'll be monitoring all of you from a private station. Don't worry, I'll make sure you can all hear me over your comm devices"
"Who's pairing up with who?" Brie questioned.
"Hmm, perhaps it's best if we keep how things have been the last years. So, you and Dean, Nikki and Roman."
Both Nikki and Roman bumped fists.
Feeling an overwhelming sense of possessiveness and jealousy Dean cut in.
"I'm with her." He said nodding towards Nikki.
The fearless diva blinked at him. Not sure how to respond to his sudden claim, she immediately looked at Alexa who was busy adjusting her specs.
"I guess that's fine. Anymore questions before we get started?"
Everybody remained silent until Nikki spoke up.
"This isn't a question" She began. "But last night, we found out Brie was brought back from 2013 whereas Roman and I, we believe we were brought back from 2014. I don't know if that means anything to you or if it helps in any way?"
"Interesting… Dean-"
"-Ambrose." The lunatic fringe corrected.
"Sorry, Ambrose do you remember anything from your past?" Alexa asked.
The superstar shook his head.
"Neither do I. No biggy. I'll factor that theory in, perhaps you guys are on to something. However, let's not dwell on that. Let's get these tests underway. Now I have these."
Pulling out a case from the desk behind her. She opened it to reveal four steel device collars.
"I need you each to put one of these on. They will record your metabolic and muscle movement data as well as brain activity."
Shrugging his shoulders, Dean was the first to grab one and put it on. The rest followed and did the same. Securing it around his neck, Roman couldn't resist making a joke.
"Don't touch that button. That's the self-destruct button" he warned the girls.
This time both Bellas gave Roman the middle finger. Dean chuckled at them.
"Tough crowd" Roman muttered.
"Wouldn't this interfere with the readings of the CT Scan?" Nikki questioned.
Everyone except for Alexa had puzzled faces. The petite blonde flashed a smile towards the Bella twin. Nikki was so focused on hearing the answer that she was oblivious to everyone's reaction
"Nope. I got them coated with a special amalgam. The readings should come out as accurate as ever."
Nikki nodded her head, tapping the collar with her fingers. That could come quite handy if she can isolate it and add it to her bike. Weighing the options in her head, she decided that it wasn't important right now.
Her attention drawn back to Alexa Bliss.
"All right. Everything is a go." Alexa announced. "You all may head to your private section. Once all individual tests are done, I'll give you the green light to complete the final test where you guys partner up. Sound cool?"
Everyone agreed.
"Any final questions before you part?"
All four shook their heads.
"Okay, y'all have a blissful day" she smiled.
As everybody heads out to leave, Roman stops Brie and presses a kiss to her forehead causing the Bella twin to blush.
"I'll see you soon"
Half way down the corridor Nikki yells at the two.
"Move it! We don't have all day!"
Brie shakes her head before saying goodbye to Roman.
Alexa brought up four monitors. Each screen corresponding to the four test rooms.
"Okay. Let's see their data reports." Alexa murmured
With a push of a button Alexa was able to access the live feed from each collar. Everything seemed normal on The Bellas side. The petite scientist narrowed in on Roman and Dean's live results. There was a small spike in brain activity. Hardly anything to worry about but she would monitor them carefully. Perhaps the CT scan would provide more info.
Tapping her comm, the former glitter princess of NXT wanted to check in with everyone.
A blue projection of Alexa Bliss appeared to each subject.
"Hey everyone, just checking in. So if all of you can step onto the circular platform, I can begin the scan yeah?"
Each of them did as they were told. Dean's eyes wandered around the room unsure where to look. Brie remained still and just stared at the wall in front of her. Nikki and Roman were familiar with the whole procedure, giving a thumbs up to Alexa.
"Okay, here we go." Alexa beamed.
A giant cylindrical ring attached to two vertical bars descended from the ceiling. Rotating around each person, a read beam was produced from one bar to the other. As the beam crossed over each body part, it was able to then gather pin point information thus producing the scan.
"This kinda reminds me of a disco" Dean said bobbing from side to side.
"Contain your dance moves Ambrose" Alexa joked. "We're almost done."
Dean immediately stopped moving. "That wasn't dance moves"
The cylindrical device finally reached the bottom of the platform then began to ascend once more to reach the top.
"They looked like dance moves to me." Alexa giggled.
"I was not dancing! Wait- the others can't hear me right?" Dean questioned.
"Nope. Only I can hear you and see you."
"Can they hear you though?" Dean checked
"If I want them to. I wouldn't worry about them teasing you too much after we're done"
"Wait! You told them"
The scanning device finally reached the top and the results had come through to Alexa's main computer.
"And we're all finished!" Alexa beamed ignoring Dean's mumbled curses towards her.
"Next is the psych evaluation. There is a data pad located in the corner of each room on the wall. All answers are sworn to confidentially. All that will get shown to me is a simple pass or fail from the test."
"How do we know that? You could look at our answers?" a cautious Brie asked.
"I couldn't look at them even if I wanted to. I'd have to spend years hacking into the security code that Merc and Greene had put in place. I may be a genius now but I'm only human" Alexa laughed.
Nodding, Brie picked up the data pad as did everyone else.
"Alright, I'm going to disconnect from my comm. Dial me if you need any help."
Tapping her device once more. Her projection disappeared.
There were a series of twenty questions. Most were yes or no type questions and the rest just required you to pick the most accurate answer out of the bunch. For example;
How would you describe your life in this new age?
Extremely well
Very well
Moderately well
Slightly well
Not at all well.
Roman and Dean stayed fairly calm, their backs against the wall, they went through each question with ease. Brie took a seat in the chair by the table, at times she had a puzzled face but she managed to get through it.
Nikki was a different story to all three. She finished the test well ahead of the others. It didn't surprise the sparkly scientist at all to see the fearless diva moving on to drawing blood samples from her arm. Nikki was a tough chick. Looking back since the time she woke up, Alexa had never once seen Nikki break down or moan about the situation. She just kept going.
She wondered if the fearless diva had allowed herself to really accept what's been thrust upon her.
"Lex, the 2000's called. They want their test-tubes back." Nikki called over her comm.
A small smile appeared across the petit woman's face.
"They're vintage. A throwback for old times' sake?"
Despite having to pour blood into a test-tube vile, drawing blood wasn't an arduous task like it was in the past. All it required was placing your arm within an arm-brace like contraption and the rest took care of itself.
"Do we still get something sweet afterwards?" Nikki joked.
"That can be arranged? You do have to complete an obstacle course after this."
"Ugh. Don't remind me."
Placing the last vile into the test tube rack; Nikki wasn't too overly excited about participating in this endurance circuit, part of the reason was because she helped designed it but if it helped the guys then she would shut up and get on with it.
Checking her comm for the location of her final test, the fearless diva felt satisfied that she could leave early. However, she would never over-step Alexa's instructions so she called in to check first.
"Hey Lex, I'm done. Am I good to go?"
A moment before her reply.
Nikki was then given the green light. "Sure, the others are just finishing up and will be heading over soon."
"Great. Thanks"
The Powerhouse Samoan waited outside Brie's testing room so that they could both walk to their last test together. At this point, Roman just wanted to maximise as much time as he could with Brie because if he was honest with himself; it was hard to believe that she was here.
Even as the door opened, and her smiling self-stepped out, he needed to touch his earth goddess to put his mind at ease. Reaching out for her hand, she happily let his fingers intertwine with hers until they were locked in a gentle hold.
"How was it?" Roman asked as the couple began to walk.
"It was fine. I'm still worried about Nikki though. Did you manage to get through to her?"
"I think so, she's going to talk to him. They'll figure it out."
"Thank you." She says out of the blue.
"For what?" Roman chuckles.
"For taking care of my sister."
Roman smiled at her kind words but in his mind, Nikki is the one that deserved all the credit.
"You should be thanking your sister" Roman said which provoked a confused expression from the brunette diva.
"I know that sounds weird but she's the real champ in all of this. I don't know anybody who could be thrown 2000 years into the future and not let that break them."
"Well she wasn't called fearless for nothing." Brie pointed out.
"Yeah, but I don't think I could have survived if it wasn't for her. She was the rock out of this whole situation. I was taking it pretty hard not having you around." Roman admitted.
Brie gave a rueful smile but Roman kissed her on the lips before continuing his story.
"During that time every little thing would trigger my memories of you and how much I missed you."
"Then how could you live with Nikki?"
"I didn't say anything. I just bottled everything up. Tried my best to hide it but I was doing a crappy job."
"What happened?" Brie asked.
"Well, one day Nikki came home and her hair was different."
"Wait? That's it? She dyed her hair?"
A small smile appeared on Roman's face. "It wasn't that same familiar dark brunette hair anymore."
Brie suddenly clicked what it meant. There were subtle differences between the twins but they couldn't escape the fact that they were near reflections of each other. Roman was constantly reminded of her through Nikki. Even though it wasn't her sister's fault, Nikki still tried to make life easier for him. Brie couldn't help but feel guilty that she wasn't as helpful towards Dean as Nikki was to Roman. Perhaps if she had told Dean the truth from the beginning, it wouldn't have made their encounter with Nikki and Roman so awkward. Shaking the thoughts from her head, Roman had stopped outside a large double door entrance.
"This is it" he said.
"Why do I suddenly feel like this is going to be worse than any conditioning training Bill Demott has put us through?"
Roman laughed. "Cause you have perfect gut instinct and your sister is a sadist."
Finally the couple walked inside.
Dean crossed through the double doors to find Nikki already waiting for him. Just as he was about to approach her, his eyes looked ahead at the constructed course in front of them.
"Is she trying to kill us?" Dean spoke up.
Glancing over her shoulder, the fearless diva laughed. "Believe it or not. This is the baby course."
"How do you know that?" he questioned.
"Nikki help built the courses" A projected Alexa appeared with a joyful smile.
Nikki just looked on with a smirk on her face.
"Those dance moves should come in handy on the course" Alexa teased.
"I wasn't dancing" Dean muttered swatting at the petit diva's face.
Nikki shook her head as she began removing her shirt to reveal her sports bra underneath. Dean averted his attention elsewhere not wanting to get caught looking. His efforts didn't go unnoticed as the fearless diva pointed out.
"My body isn't anything new." She said throwing her shirt on the ground.
Dean watched her move to the start line. She couldn't be more wrong he thought. Everything about her was new to him. Fascinating as she was. It didn't excuse their past.
He removed his shirt and joined her at the start line.
"Neither is mine" he said.
Nikki glanced over at his well-built physique. She wouldn't deny him there.
A countdown timer began.
Three
Two
One
GO!
With that, both superstar and diva ran up the smooth wooden log that led to a specially designed rope climbing frame that required rigid muscle control to navigate. It favoured those of lighter weight so Nikki excelled the climb with an almost feline grace.
Next they were met with a ring ladder that tested upper-body strength. Dean was much stronger than her, and they were neck and neck again by the time they reached the final set of rings.
Dropping to the firm ground, both superstar and diva made their way through the dark and narrow tunnel built with walls seeping a slick gel that frustrated forward movement.
"Were you on crack when you made this?" Dean growled.
The fearless diva didn't respond. Sure, she had a hand in creating this obstacle, but she was swearing by the time she got to the end beside a sweat-dripping Dean Ambrose who had tendrils of dark sandy hair stuck to his temples and forehead.
Then they were wiping off the gel and scrambling across the jungle gym.
Normal to the eye at first glance, it was anything but once you grabbed a hold of a bar. Alexa had sections constantly changing and moving.
Focusing only on navigating the complex structure, Nikki told Dean to follow her lead. The fearless diva grabbed a hold and began climbing. Dean followed closely behind.
This section was the most difficult and most testing of an individual's endurance. It was almost a chess game. The jungle gym was a giant complex puzzle that could change without a moment's notice and you had to be quick to solve it with each move.
Dean's arms were aching, he dropped down on all fours after successfully reaching the end of the jungle gym thanks to her. A hand held out in front of his face, he looked up to see Nikki waiting for him.
"C'mon. We're almost finished."
Grabbing a hold of her hand, he let her help him up.
They gritted their teeth and completed the rest of the course together. It was tough and it kicked both their asses but it was all relief as they crossed the finish line.
Collapsing to his knees, "You're evil." he gasped,
Sprawled on her back, Nikki took a moment to catch her breath.
"You didn't die."
A projection of Alexa appeared to each couple.
"Awesome job guys! But uh… I need Dean and Roman to run the course together now. Brie and Nikki, you're both done and can shower. We'll meet back at the meeting room to discuss the test results"
"Whoa- whoa... Back it up. You want me to go through that hell again?" Dean huffed.
"Yes."
Dean glared at Nikki.
"Make Roman walk here Lex" Nikki suggested.
"Sure I'll let him know."
With that Nikki stood up offering a hand once more to Dean. He waved it off falling on his back.
"I'm staying like this until he gets here."
Shrugging her shoulders she walked out of the room.
The boys crossed the finish line and they immediately dropped to the floor. Cooling down, Roman ruffled Dean's hair.
"Hey man, nice job" He held out his hand as an offer of new friendship. Not even thinking twice, he slapped Roman's hand as a buddy high-five.
"This better be worth it."
Alexa appeared once more.
"Well done you guys. But you're not allowed to join us until you're all cleaned up. You two did awesome! And I told you those dance moves would come in handy Ambrose." Alexa winked. "See you both in a bit" she waved before disconnecting.
"I'm going to block her soon" Dean muttered.
"Might not be a bad idea" Roman chuckled.
Everybody returned to the meeting room after having showered and changed into a clean change of clothes. Not wasting anytime, Roman cut to the chase.
"So what did we find out?" Roman questioned.
Alexa had a winning smile on her face. Tapping a button on her comm, it projected a map of the different sectors.
"The blue dots represent Roman and the green dots represent Dean. These are the places you both travelled to in the last year."
All four were in shock. The dots were in close range of each other; never far apart.
"I believe those that have the side effect have a special link." Alexa confirmed.
Roman and Dean glanced at one another.
"How are you sure?" Nikki asked. "I mean? Couldn't they have travelled to each of those places at different times?"
"That's what I thought too but check this out." Alexa, punched in a code and it brought up each locations' corresponding date and time of which they visited.
Either the dates matched or they were only a couple of days apart from one another.
"It could be a coincidence?" Nikki mentioned again. "I mean Roman travelled to Torval to watch the underground fights."
Alexa turned to Roman expecting him to answer for himself.
"Was it a coincidence?" the petite blonde with dyed blue tips asked.
"Looking back, no I don't think it was a coincidence. It was an inkling that made me go there the first time. The fights were just another reason to keep returning"
"What about Dean? Why were you in Surkon?" Nikki questioned.
The rugged superstar shrugged his shoulders. "I just drove."
Rolling her eyes, Nikki didn't hide her frustration with his answer.
"We can't argue with the facts though, right?" Brie pointed out. "It was only a matter of time before these two were going to bump into each other."
"That's not all I came across" Alexa said. "Take a look at the results from the device collars"
Bringing them up on screen, she showed a side by side comparison of Dean and Roman's results from the endurance circuit.
"All metabolic functions and muscle movements are normal however when comparing the brain activity of Dean and Roman. There's a spike after you completed the course a second time. It's subtle, barely visible but it's there."
"So what does that mean?" Roman asked.
"It means I've attributed the cause of your side effect to your limbic system."
"English aquamarine." Dean muttered.
"The parts of your brain that deals with showing, recognising and controlling the body's reactions to emotions"
Dean had a look of stupor on his face as well as Roman.
"It controls your body's reactions to emotions. Anger, your blood boils. Happiness, you smile." An impatient Nikki put bluntly.
"Well said Nikki." Alexa commended. "Anyway, with that being said. Taking a look at your CT scans." Alexa quickly brings up on display. "They show that your limbic system is ever so slightly altered"
"How?" Roman questioned.
"It's evolved. You love Brie correct?"
"Absolutely." Roman answered immediately looking at Brie with a smile.
"Well, your brain recognizes love as a physical presence in the form of Brie. So your brain reacts negatively when you two are apart hence why your body goes into sporadic episodes. I believe the same goes with you Ambrose."
"But I don't love Brie" Dean cleared up straight away.
Nikki stood uncomfortably as the room came to an awkward silence. Wanting to rescue her sister from this awkward moment, Brie spoke up.
"Does that mean I'm the cure to Roman?"
"Huh? Oh Yes. The closer you two are, the less likely the side effect will provoke an episode." Alexa clarified.
"Okaaaaaaaaaay, well I think that's enough knowledge for the day" Nikki fake yawned. "We should go get some rest yeah? It's getting quite late. I have work tomorrow."
"Hang on" Alexa called out. "I thought I'd explain to Ambrose how-"
"But he looks so tired? Doesn't he look tired Brie?" Nikki shoved her twin sister in the side.
"Yeah? We can hold off any questions until tomorrow right?" Brie muttered uncomfortably.
Roman and Dean both shot Nikki a glance yet neither uttered a word.
"I guess, it is getting late. You all should get some rest" Alexa coincided. "Everyone can go except for Nikki. I need to talk to you."
"Sure." Nikki shrugged her shoulders. In all honesty, she just didn't want to approach Dean after finding out about everything.
Alexa waited for the three to leave before revealing what's on her mind.
"What do you want to talk about?" Nikki asked.
"Do I really have to say it?"
Nikki took a deep breath expecting a lengthy lecture from the petit blonde.
"Look, I know he doesn't remember you or whatever but he's had it rough the last few years. The side effect has taken a toll on him and whether you like it or not. He needs you."
"You're right" Nikki sighed. "There's just a lot to think about and... I'll talk to him."
"Good" Alexa gave her a hug before letting her go.
Nikki got back to room and jumped into bed. Letting the sheets swallow her body. She wrapped herself whole in the covers. The former diva sighed.
Today had been a tough day.
She closed her eyes willing herself to drift asleep.
Then a knock came at her door.
Nikki groaned. She really didn't want to get out of bed plus she had to make a trip back to Surkon tomorrow. It was in the afternoon but still.
Another knock on the door.
Cursing herself, the brunette miner rolled out of bed to answer the door. Half expecting it to be Brie or Roman, she was surprised to find Dean at her room this late.
"Hey."
"Hey? Something wrong?" Nikki asked.
"I just- Can I room with you tonight?" Realizing how that could be taken in the wrong way, he quickly assured her that he would sleep on the floor.
Nikki nodded. A tough pill to swallow, she stepped to the side and let him come in. Part of her liked to think he was there because he was starting to remember but the rational side told her that he only came because the closer he was to her meant that the nagging side effect was practically non-existent. He may not be consciously aware but his body knew.
Clambering into bed, she gave him a pillow and one of her blankets. No words exchanged. Just a courteous nod.
He settled himself on the floor next to her bed. Nikki's eyes fixated on the ceiling above. Three years of being alone. It was hard to have him in the same room and not be in the same bed.
Sensing she was still awake, Dean checked on the brunette diva.
"You still awake?" Dean asked. His voice calm.
Nikki didn't reply.
"Yeah, I'd probably fall asleep listening to me too." He chuckled quietly to himself.
"I wouldn't say that." Nikki spoke up.
Propping his head underneath his arm. Dean had a small smirk on his face.
"Oh yeah? What would you say?"
"Insomnia" Nikki stated.
"Insomnia? Really?"
"Well I'm not asleep am I?"
"I'll let-"
Nikki let out a breath. "It's fine Ambrose. It was only a joke."
"I told you before, you call me Dean." The tone in his voice. It unnerved her. She got out of her bed and he simultaneously sat up.
The brunette diva hit a switch on the side wall that caused the room to become dimly lit.
Joining him on the floor. Nikki sat on her knees in front of him.
She could see his skewed expression. Mirroring her reaction earlier on in the day when she was trying to figure him out. She wondered what he saw. Could he only see her tough exterior she put up or was he able to see past that and find that she was barely holding frayed strands of herself together?
"I need to tell you something." The tone in her voice, a mix between fear and frustration.
"I already know." He simply said.
Nikki looked at him confused.
"Wait? You remember?" she said a little too excited.
"I overhead you and Roman talking this morning"
"Oh." She said quietly looking away.
"I mean? Was I a total douchebag?"
Snapping her attention back to him, she was baffled by his question.
"What?"
"I don't know" he shrugged. "It was like you wanted to hide from our past… which I can only think we didn't have a good relationship?"
Feeling like she had been punched in the gut, Nikki found it hard to admit the truth about their past because it cut her deep to think about what she lost.
"No. Our relationship was perfect."
"So… you just quit because I can't remember any of it?"
"No!" she immediately answered but she could see how he came to that conclusion. "I was going to tell you- I just- I was afraid and I didn't want to freak you out."
Her gaze dropped to the ground. Everything felt so raw to her.
"I may not remember anything but that doesn't mean you need to treat me like a kid" he snapped.
Nikki blinked at him for a couple of seconds before falling back in laughter. It startled Dean at first because he had no idea what was so funny and considering he just snapped at her; but her laugh was so infectious, that it crawled deep inside his veins and worked its way to his heart.
And there it stayed. A warm pulse.
When she finally calmed down. She held out a hand, expecting him to help her back up to a sitting position which he did.
"It's crazy" she said wiping a tear out of the corner of her eye.
"What?"
"The whole kid thing. That's exactly what you used to say after Roman and Seth gave you so much shit after all the crazy stuff you did."
Dean had no idea what she was talking about. Nikki clarified a little more about his two tag partners.
"Seth, he isn't awake but you've met Roman. They were your best friends. No. They were more like the brothers you never had."
Dean nodded, taking in the new information.
"Roman still thinks we're brothers."
"You guys had a special bond. To him, you were his hard headed little brother." She smiled fondly looking back on better times.
Dean thought about his second go at the obstacle course. The two men had clicked, worked together well and managed to survive once again. Could he imagine himself being babied by the staunch Samoan? Quite frankly, he could. There was that over the top brother-nuance about him that Dean had picked up on when Roman helped him after he got caught on the ropes during the circuit.
"I don't hate the guy, so I guess that's something?" he said.
Nikki just smiled and Dean couldn't help but smile back at her. Yeah, there was definitely something there he thought but it's not like they could pick up where they just left off. Never had he wanted to get his memory back as desperately as he did now.
Touching his hand, she made him look at her.
She could tell he was frustrated not being able to remember.
"C'mon. I want to show you something."
Helping him off the floor, she made him sit on the bed. Going to her cupboard she pulled out a prism-like gizmo. She came back to the bed and sat next to him.
Activating the device, she let it hover in the air between them. Suddenly it sprung to life and began projecting an image of what looked to be an arena packed full of people.
"What is this?"
"Just watch." She smiled.
This contest is set for one fall and is for the United States Championship.
Dean continued to watch some guy called Kofi Kingston walk down to a ring. He was the current champion. He had no idea where Nikki was going with this but then he saw himself appear on screen alongside Roman and some other guy who he gathered was Seth. Shocked by seeing himself walking down through thousands and thousands of people, it struck a chord in him. He grabbed Nikki's hand and held on to it.
Nikki saw his eyes light up as soon as Dean saw himself on screen.
She didn't dare say a word. Just kept him company as he watched a crucial moment of his life. He needed her and she wouldn't dare turn away from him.
damnFireworks - If you plan on reviewing... I'd like to know what you think of Roman and Nikki. I don't know.. whatever comes to mind... along with your other opinions of course. ALSO.. apologies... I know there's a few mistakes lingering around. lol