Dean picked at the scrambled eggs on his plate. He hadn't really wanted them in the first place, but Roman had insisted that he ate something. He hadn't wanted to fight about it so here he was, trying to make himself eat. Roman was up getting his food at the buffet the hotel was offering. The two of them had been the first of the roster to make it down here, but the others were starting to pile in. So far nobody had looked to join them. Dean was grateful for that. He didn't want more company beyond Roman. Not with his head as messed up as it was. He needed to think. He didn't necessarily want to do it, but he had to. He had to figure out what the fuck he was going to do about Seth. His brain was trying to tell him not to trust him. In his experience, if someone did something to hurt him once, they would do it again without question. But even with knowing that, his heart still ached for him. He ached to just forgive him and forget it ever happened. The desire went against his very nature. That wasn't what he did. It was never what he did. But the empty, gnawing feeling his chest was getting to be too much to stand.
He sighed and forced himself to take a few bites. It felt like it took every ounce of energy he had to do so. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Roman sitting down next to him. They hadn't talked a lot this morning. The weight of the previous night's conversation still hovered on them. Dean wanted to apologize. He wanted to say sorry for breaking the way he did when Seth left. He wanted to say sorry for wanting him back so much and not being able to put that aside in consideration for the fact that Seth hurt Roman too. The words were on the tip of his tongue, but they wouldn't come out. They stayed stuck inside him, the guilt making the eggs taste bitter on his tongue.
He dropped his fork on to his plate and ran his hands over his face. He couldn't eat more. He was going to be sick if he did.
"How about some bacon?" Roman, ever the mother hen, tried to shove some of his own bacon towards Dean's mouth. "It's fresh."
Dean shook his head.
"I'll trade you the eggs for my waffle then."
"Oh for fuck's sake Ro." Dean rolled his eyes and glared at his best friend. "I ate some, alright? Don't be pushy."
Roman started to say something in response, but then quickly shut his mouth. His gaze went to straight ahead of them, which made Dean turn his head to look and see what he saw. Dolph had just come in and was looking around the room. Their eyes met, and for a split second Dolph started to smile. But then the gaze lingered and the smile quickly evaporated. He had seen something in Dean's eyes that caused it.
"You want to go over to him?" Roman asked softly.
"Don't gotta." Dean swallowed hard as he watched Dolph start to make his way over. "He's coming this way."
"I'll leave you to it then."
"What? No wait. You sit your ass back - Roman get back here!" Dean tried to grab him and pull him back down, but Roman got away from him. He let out a frustrated sigh, glaring at Roman's retreating form until he heard Dolph pull out the chair across from him. He reluctantly looked at the bleached blonde, swallowing hard at the look on the older man's face. There was sadness, but more than that there was just resignation. "Um...Dolph, listen..."
"You looked absolutely terrified when I walked in," Dolph informed him. "Did you know that?"
Dean frowned. "I did not."
"Kind of did."
"No way." Dean picked the fork back up just so he could do something with at least one hand. "Why would I even look that way?"
"Because you're about to break it off with me."
The matter of fact statement was followed by a long stretch of silence. "How do you -"
"Know?" Dolph leaned forward and rested his elbows against the table while leveling Dean with a hard look. "Come on, I'm not stupid. I knew this was coming. Maybe I didn't want it to, but you know, I can't exactly just get my way here."
Dean fidgeted in his seat. He didn't like these kinds of conversations. He wasn't any good at them at all. Any time he had them he always ended up saying the wrong thing and making matters worse.
"I knew I was a rebound." Dolph kept talking through Dean's silence. "I mean, it was pretty clear from the start. And I mean, I didn't have an issue with that. Not at the time. I liked knowing that I was going to get laid on at least a semi-regular basis again." He tried to laugh a bit, but the sound didn't really come out. "I did fuck up. I started to like you as more than just...and I knew I shouldn't have. You weren't over him. I never had a chance to begin with."
"Jesus Dolph." Dean fidgeted more, unable to control his movements at all. "I know I'm an asshole. You don't really need to like, rub it in or anything."
"I'm not rubbing it in Dean. I'm just...fuck it. I don't know." Dolph did laugh this time, though it sounded pretty bitter. "It just sucks, alright? Knowing that I never had a chance to begin with sucks. Knowing that he won without lifting a finger kind of fucking sucks."
"He didn't fucking win shit," Dean denied. "I haven't even decided if I'm actually taking him back."
Dolph didn't look convinced. "He still won even if you don't. I mean for fuck's sake Dean, you looked happier fighting him last night than you ever have with me. What does that tell you?"
Dean had no answer for him. What the fuck could he even say? There was nothing. The only thing he could do was apologize, but just like before, the words got stuck inside of him. He tried to force them out, but they stayed stuck right on the tip of his tongue. He did feel guilty right now. Even with not returning the feelings Dolph had towards him, he still felt like a tremendous dick at the moment. Dolph hadn't really deserved having to put up with him. He hadn't deserved to be used as a rebound. "Dolph I -"
"Look, it's fine alright?" Dolph spoke again, effectively cutting Dean off. "Let's just forget about it." He stood back up and gestured towards the exit. "I'm gonna go. And I'll uh, see you around."
Dean watched him leave, a heavy sigh escaping him as he did so. "Fuck," he muttered. He looked around, seeing that Roman was nowhere to be seen. "Fuck it." He put the fork down and pushed his plate away. He had to get out of there. Get some air. Maybe it wouldn't stop him from feeling like such an asshole, but at least getting up and moving would give him a little bit of a distraction. And that was something he would more than willingly take at the moment.
Just like the day before, Seth got to the arena before the other wrestlers did. This time he went straight to the list of matches the agents had posted to the locker room wall. He was facing Dean again, this time in tag team action. He was being made to team with Rusev to take on Dean and Roman. The idea of this match made his heart sink down into the pit of his stomach. He wanted to be around Dean and could deal with Rusev, but Roman was another story. Roman would probably go out of his way to try to murder him right there in front of everyone. It wouldn't be the first time. Over the past year he had ate a number of spears, Superman punches, and even a cinder block being tossed right at his face. What his former tag team partner felt towards him now was perfectly clear. And how to get back on his good side was probably going to be even harder than getting back on to Dean's. Dean missed him and probably still loved him (god he hoped anyway), despite everything that had happened. Roman was just going to give him an even harder time because of it. If Dean wouldn't protect himself then Mama Bear Roman would. And there was no force on earth more dangerous than Mama Bear Roman.
Seth left his stuff in one of the empty rooms before going back out to the parking lot. He wanted to get to Dean and Roman as soon as they got there. What exactly he was going to do or say he really didn't know. Maybe he would just throw himself at their feet and start with more apologies. He had already said some to Dean, but more couldn't hurt. And he owed Roman them too. They probably wouldn't be very well received, but he could try.
He took his phone out of his pocket and scrolled through his Twitter timeline as he waited. He was trying to act natural, though he knew people were still staring at him. He did his best to ignore them though. They weren't who he cared about. "Come on," he muttered under his breath as the next car brought Renee and Summer instead of Dean and Roman. "Come on you guys, where are you?"
Another ten minutes went by. Then another ten. Then another twenty. He almost thought about giving up and going inside when a black SUV pulled up. He saw Roman in the driver's seat, though Dean was nowhere to be found. He wilted in disappointment for a moment before shaking it off. Maybe it was better this way. Trying to talk to Roman was probably going to turn into a fight. And if they got in the fight Dean was going to end up in the middle of it. That wasn't what they needed to do to him.
Roman didn't notice him until after he got his bag out from the back of the car and started walking towards the arena. He stopped right in his tracks, gray eyes narrowing in anger. "Walk away Rollins," he growled. "Just walk away."
Every self-preservation instinct Seth had told him to retreat. But he didn't. He stood his ground, swallowing hard and forcing himself to keep his eyes locked on Roman's. "Can we talk?"
"No." Roman started trying to walk right by him. "We can't."
"Roman I'm sorry." Seth stepped in the older man's way, already bracing himself for the blow he knew would eventually come. "I know it don't change anything. Dean and I already had that discussion. I just...I needed him to know. And I need you to know too."
Roman's eyes narrowed angrily. "Oh yeah?"
"Yeah."
"You're fucking sorry?"
"Yeah."
"You miss him?"
"Yeah?"
Roman dropped his bag. Seth flinched, expecting the blow to come now. But it didn't. Roman just kept staring at him, which was almost worse. The whole waiting to see what he would do or say was awful.
"You were my brother." The words that came out of Roman's mouth were not what Seth expected. "You were family, just as much as my actual blood." His voice was strained; he was struggling to keep his tone low. "I don't want to hear why you did it. It don't really matter to me at this point."
"Roman -"
"No." Roman didn't let him finish. He stepped up to Seth, getting right in his face. "If it was just me it'd be different. I'd be more willing to start forgiving you. But it's not just me. You have no idea how much you hurt him."
"I think I -"
"No. Don't think. You don't have a fucking clue." Roman smacked his hand against Seth's chest, making him stumble back a bit. "We lost you and he nearly lost his mind. I almost didn't get him back." He smacked Seth's chest again. "You think I want to forgive you after that? You think I want him anywhere near you?" He shook his head. "I can't stop him, but I'm watching you. And the moment - the fucking MOMENT - I even THINK you're going to hurt him? I will rip you ass to pieces. You hear me?"
Seth just nodded. He wanted to say that he wouldn't hurt Dean again. He wanted to grovel and beg for some form of forgiveness, but now wasn't the time. Roman was too determined to not believe a single thing that came out of his mouth. So he stayed silent, stepping out of the way as the larger man reclaimed his bag and stormed inside. Once he was gone he let out a long, shaky sigh.
Yeah, he was definitely going to get creamed tonight.
Dean didn't make it to the arena until the first match had gotten underway. Nobody but Roman and Seth even noticed how late he was. Seth had tried to stop him to talk, but he had just grunted about doing it later. He couldn't deal with that before going out for a match. Especially not when it would be against Seth himself. This time it would be a tag match, with Roman as his partner and Rusev as Seth's. There was no way it would a pretty match in the slightest. Roman would probably try to kill Seth and then Rusev would probably be looking to kill all of them. The brute wasn't exactly known from stopping once he got on a roll of destruction.
Roman didn't give him any shit like he normally would for being late. Instead he stayed quiet, his lips tightly pressed together and his gray eyes troubled. Dean thought about asking what was wrong, but he didn't. Not because he didn't care; he was just fairly certain that he already knew what was bothering him. If Seth had been waiting out in the parking lot the whole time for him, there was an excellent chance that he and Roman had gotten into some kind of confrontation. Seth's face hadn't been pounded in, so couldn't have gotten too ugly. Then again, maybe Roman was just saving it for when he was going to get paid to do it.
They didn't talk strategy before going out there. Coming up with all that stuff had been Seth's thing. Dean and Roman both preferred just going out there and fighting. And fight they did. The moment Roman was over the guardrail they hit the ring, Dean jumping right on Seth and making sure Roman took Rusev. It didn't occur to him to think about the fact that he was protecting Seth from whatever ass kicking Roman wanted to dish out. And he certainly didn't stop to think about the fact that Seth actively avoided tagging in Rusev once his team gained controlled and Dean found himself isolated from Roman. His brain tried to go there, but he pushed the thoughts away. He wouldn't go there. Not now. He wouldn't let himself do it.
"Come on Dean!" Roman was in their corner, nearly climbing right over the ropes in his desperation to get in. "Dean you gotta get out of there! Come to me Dean!"
"What the fuck -" Dean managed to get up to his feet as he delivered a series of elbows to Seth's stomach. "- do you think -" He nailed Rusev in the face for good measure before starting to try to get to his corner "- I'm trying to - OW!" His legs got swept out from under him by Seth, who immediately went for the cover.
"Sorry Dean."
"Fucking hell Seth." Dean kicked out, but immediately got trapped in a chin lock. "Oh come on!"
Seth kept his grip nice and tight, determined to not let Dean go. Dean struggled to get up once again, eventually getting free and nailing Seth with a swinging neckbreaker.
"Come on Dean!" Despite the noise from Rusev, Lana and the crowd, Roman was still the loudest one of them all. "Get over here! Come on come on come on!"
Dean finally managed to get over there and made the tag. Roman nearly trampled him in his rush to get in there and start kicking ass. He practically flew right at Rusev, who had just been tagged in as well. Dean rolled out on the floor, not needing to watch it all as he collected himself. Instead he stayed on the ground, not getting up until he heard the crowd groan loudly. Seth had broken up Roman's pin attempt and was now trying to slug it out with him. It wasn't something that went well for him. Roman hit harder than he did and was able to toss him out of the ring with ease. But the distraction was all Rusev needed. The Bulgarian was up on his feet and Roman turned around just in time to eat a huge kick to the face.
"Shit!" Dean slid into the ring and charged the brute. His fists flew wildly, one hitting Rusev in the nose and busting it open. Rusev roared and a knee to Dean's gut stopped his flurry of punches. Strong hands gripped his shirt and suddenly he was being tossed with an absolute reckless abandon. He landed on his bad shoulder and yelped in pain. Oh fucking hell. Not again. He clutched it tightly, trying to assess the damage. It didn't feel like it had actually dislocated again. It had hurt like a bitch, and another wayward fall would probably do him again, but for now he was okay.
"Rusev!" Lana's shrill voice assaulted his ears. "Rusev no!"
Dean pushed himself up to his knees and looked up. Rusev was coming straight at him with a steel chair aimed at his head.
"Dean!" It wasn't Roman's voice that cried out. It was Seth's. The younger man slipped back into the ring and grabbed the chair out of Rusev's hands. Rusev turned around, only to eat the edge of the chair in his stomach.
"Rollins!" The referee didn't even call for the bell. He was too dumbfounded by what Seth was doing.
Seth didn't pay the ref any mind. Instead he brought the chair down again, smashing it against Rusev's back. Rusev crumpled to the mat and Seth looked up, his eyes looking at Dean's shocked blue ones. Dean was still there on his knees, his hand clutching his sore shoulder. He couldn't think to get up. He was barely even breathing. The last time Seth had stood in front of him with a chair, all he had seen was a cold hatred in his eyes. Time had stood still then as he struggled to process that it had been his Seth who was betraying them. Time was standing still again, though this time it was different. The chair just hung loosely in Seth's hand. The coldness in his eyes was gone. This time they were filled with concern. This time he had saved him.
"Dean..."
That was the only word to make it out of Seth's mouth. Roman came barreling in then, only seeing Seth with the chair in front of Dean. With all the force he could muster, he plowed his shoulder straight into Seth's stomach and delivered the most brutal looking spear of his career.
"ROMAN!" Dean yelled.
"HOLY SHIT!" The referee and the crowd shared the same sentiment.
Seth curled up in the fetal position, too hurt to make a sound.
"What?" Roman turned to Dean, his expression one of pure confusion. "I was helping!"
Dean just smacked a palm to his forehead. "Oh my fucking god..."
