Chapter Twenty-Six: Moments Best Forgotten

A/N: This is late. Knew it would be. I was rewatching RAW and Roman's 6-man elimination tag match. As soon as I saw him get hit by a chair, I had to stop the video and compose myself. So much ran through my head, which inspired me to write this chapter with a much more feels approach than storyline, so it might not fit with everything else. My mind keeps saying it's stupid to still stress over that night. Oh well… This'll focus more on Roman and Seth (as much as my mind screams noooooo, because Lunatic Fringe fangirl here), but Dean will still be in it. I'll try to make it longer because this is late (no promises, I can only write so much off one idea), so read and enjoy! (Reviews would be nice too…) I've also started chapter 27, so I'll try to have that done as well. Thanks to all the readers for your support of this fic and sorry for being a lazy, horrible writer!

Roman's head was spinning. Not your average dizzy, small headache, rollercoaster, I was playing ring around the rosey spinning. No, this was the my world is falling apart, everything is out of focus, blacking out, painful, nauseating spinning. Tell him he's over exaggerating, but that's how he felt at the moment. As soon as that cold, hard, unforgiving steel connected with his back, his vision swam and his world began fading as he nearly collapsed on the ground. In what felt like hours, Roman relived the betrayal in the span of a few seconds. He was passed it of course, but he couldn't stop the memory from resurfacing. It was a night where he'd been at his lowest point. He was still ashamed of how he'd reacted backstage. Dean had been patient, understanding… mostly. The first two and a half months didn't count. He, on the other hand, had been bad tempered and didn't even listen to what his little brother had to say. He let his emotions get the better of him. The guilt ate him alive as his mind was brought back to that night…

XxX

Flashback

June 2nd, 2014…

"...Last night was Plan A. Tonight? Is Plan B. There's always a Plan B…" Roman looked to Dean confused, who responded with an equally confuzzled expression on his face. Roman threw a quick glance at Seth and thought he saw a flicker of something in his eyes. Was it… remorse, regret? He didn't dwell too long on it, thinking it was a trick of the light. He refocused on the task at hand. They both looked back at Hunter, clearly asking, "What the Hell are you talking about?" Of course, they never noticed Seth looming behind them, steel chair raised in his hand. He hadn't joined them as they moved towards the front of the ring. When Roman saw the demonic grin that lit up the COO's face, he instantly knew something was up. The hair on the back of his neck stood up and chills raced down his spine. What could they be plotting? Outside interference? Bomb under the ring? Roman really didn't know, and didn't really care at the moment, but he knew one thing for certain: this night was not going to end well. At all.

As the thought crossed his mind, he felt pain blossom all along his back: searing, stabbing, unexpected, heartbreaking pain. Even with the kevlar vest on he'd recognize the cold, unforgiving taste of steel. He felt the world as he knew it shatter before him. Who else could've hit him from behind? The Authority was on the entrance ramp and his brunette brother stood before him. Only one other person could've done this. "Why, Seth? How could you do this?" he cried in his mind. Dean's shocked, disbelieving face was the last thing he saw before he fell face first into the ropes and onto the mat. "What are you doing?!" he thought he heard Dean yell. He turned onto his back, cringing in pain as he watched Seth, his baby brother, someone he trusted with his life, assault Dean with a steel chair. Seth hit him only one more time before focusing the rest of the beating on Dean. He heard his younger brother's screams of agony, tears in his eyes as he was powerless to stop it. He thought maybe Seth had a plan. Make the Authority think he's betraying them. Lure them in. So many crazy possibilities raced through his head. All were to make him think anything but the inevitable. This was all a nightmare. He was napping back at the hotel and everything was fine. He'd wake up in cold sweat to find Dean and Seth worrying over him and making sure he was alright. He had hope, however small it was.

All his hopes were extinguished when he saw the two toned wrestler grab another chair and throw it in front of Dean's head. Only one thing would come of that. His fear was confirmed when Seth Curbstomped Dean into oblivion. Roman looked into Seth's eyes and saw three things: pain, darkness, and sadness. He'd betrayed the Shield, broken their friendship and brotherhood wide open. There would be no coming back from this. He watched as Seth left the ring and joined Triple H and Randy Orton on the outside. He must've handed the chair to the Viper because he felt blow after blow land on his back. Vicious and powerful strikes that made him cry out. The hits continued until Roman's face was a blank, dazed mask of pain. Randy ripped off his vest, exposing his red and purple bruised back, and RKO'd him onto the chair. Triple H and that sellout of a brother joined him in the ring. He heard Dean try crawling over to him and saw the white of the lights before everything faded to black…

XxX

Roman did the best he could to support Dean on the way up the entrance ramp backstage. His vest in one hand, his other holding onto the limp arm Dean had thrown over his shoulder. He took slow, wobbly, heavy steps as the backstage entrance came agonizingly slowly closer in his swimming vision. Breaths came so hard and fast that he thought he'd started hyperventilating. Dean's were slow and shallow. The younger man felt like dead weight and Roman's right side was almost completely numb by the time he found a place where they could sit down and recuperate. The Lunatic Fringe basically collapsed on the couch, moaning and groaning loudly in anguish.

"Dean, you okay over there?" The brunette shot a death glare at the Samoan.

"What kind of fucking question is that?! Our baby brother just betrayed us, stabbed us in the back, for that power hungry, worthless, conniving, no good asshole, and you're asking me if I'm okay?! Are you fucking kidding me?! NO! I'm not okay! I'm the farthest possible I can be from okay! I loved him, Ro. Not just brotherly love, something… more. We were getting somewhere. We… we were almost official… Now this. The Shield was on top of the world too. Kiss those dreams goodbye…"

"What're we gonna do now?" Roman asked, voice low and hoarse.

"Hell if I know. There's no Shield without Seth. We can't go on with just the two of us. I can't go on without the both of you. I don't know where to go from here…" Roman understood. Seth and Dean were virtually inseparable. They were closer to each than either had ever been to Roman. Heartbroken wouldn't even begin to describe Dean's feelings right now. Even devastated was a light term in this situation. Before the older man could reply, there was hurried knocking at the Shield's locker room door. Both exchanged pissed off glances before Roman went to answer it. He regretted the decision as soon as he saw the two timing face behind it. He tried to slam the door, but deft hands caught it and allowed Seth to hastily enter. Dean looked up and all the remaining color, how ever little there was, drained out of his face.

"Look, *gulps* I know I'm the last person you wanna see right now-"

"You damn right you are. What the Hell do you want, you traitor?!" Roman roared, vision starting to go crimson from his fury. Seth cringed.

"Rome, please, just listen to me. For just a few seconds is all I'm askin' fo-"

"SHUT UP! Shut up! Do you think we want to hear your excuses?! Your lies?! I will never trust another word that comes out of your mouth! Do you expect us to give you the time of day when you just annihilated your brothers? The only two in this company who really give a damn about you? Who love you more than they should? Who call you family?!" he was breathing hard after that little rant. Tears were streaming down the other two men's cheeks. Seth's knees gave out and he collapsed with his head in his hands in front of Roman.

"Roman. Roman, please. Just let me-"

"Don't," he growled, "You are no brother of mine. I don't like you, I certainly don't love you-"

"R-Ro," Dean whispered brokenly, speaking for the first time since Seth's arrival, "D-Don't say that. Don't say something you'll regret. You don't mean that…"

"Oh, I mean every word coming out of my mouth right now. *turns to Seth, who looks up frightened* I can't stand the sight of you. I can't stand being in the same room as you. I hate you! You. Are. Dead. To. Me." Without another glance at either of them, the grey eyed (former?) Hound of Justice stormed out of the room with his bags in tow.

XxX

End Flashback

Now, Roman's mind returned to the present. Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows were beating the crap out of him with a steel chair. His mind wasn't focused. He couldn't keep up with what was happening. His only thoughts were of Seth. He lay stunned against the announce table as his cousins tried their best to avenge him. They only went a few seconds toe to toe with the Club before they were tossed out of the ring. Roman finally came to his senses, rushing into to the ring and delivering much deserved spears to both of AJ's buddies. He picked up the steel chair, ready to unleash his fury when Styles caught him from behind. He tried going for the Styles Clash on the steel chair when Roman reversed it, throwing him over the ropes and onto the apron. The champ dropped the chair at the Phenomenal One's feet, beckoning him into the ring, inviting him to take a swing. AJ kicked it back to him, opting to try high risk instead. Of course, the Samoan ducked, retrieving the steel chair and whirling around. AJ landed on his feet and rolled onto the outside. He shouted to Roman that it would all be over for him at Extreme Rules. Roman borrowed a line from the Rock. "Just bring it! I'll see you in a few weeks."

After that catastrophe, he headed backstage, sprinting to his cousins and checking on them. They seemed more concerned about Roman however. "What happened out there, Uce? You just froze for a minute," Jimmy questioned, hoping Roman would confide in him. It was to no avail as he got, "Nothin', just wasn't focused." as a quiet reply. Roman sat down on a nearby equipment crate, eyes closed and head in his hands. They decided to just drop it, knowing Roman wouldn't really elaborate in this state. He had that broken look in his eye. He wasn't the usual Roman after a show. It had been so long since they saw him like that. Back when… Realization dawned on the twins in an instant.

"Alright then, cuz. Call us if you need anything. We'll see you later," Jey told him, signaling to Jimmy that this was their exit. The two left Roman to his own devices and went to find the rest of the Shield. They found the two waiting outside of Roman's locker room with Roman's bags, Dean pacing restlessly and Seth contemplating something as he leaned against the wall. They looked up to see who was approaching. The Usos were walking swiftly towards them with worried faces.

"You guys seen Rome? He was supposed to be here a few minutes ago and he hasn't shown up," Seth said to them. Jey sighed.

"He's all torn up about somethin'. He wouldn't tell us, so we thought it might be better to go get y'all," he replied. Dean stopped pacing and strolled over to them.

"But he's alright, isn't he? He's not hurt, or-"

"No, he's fine! He's just, I dunno, sulkin' I guess. He looks heartbroken, Uce. I don't know what happened out there, but he's just out of it," Jimmy told him. "He looks like he did after the-" Seth suddenly pushed off the wall and grabbed Jimmy, shaking him.

He demanded, more furious sounding than he intended to be, "Where is he?!"

"Chill out, Uce, just chill! He's out by the curtain, man! *Seth lets go and storms off* Jeez. What with him?"

"That chair shot… It reminded us about… ya know. That night. Heh, you'd think it'd hurt me more, but Roman… He had a lot of trust issues after that. He couldn't stand Seth. But after they made up, something just shattered in him. He beats himself up about how he treated Seth. I guess the chair..." Dean didn't finish the sentence as he headed off towards the curtain after Seth with his older brother's stuff, waving to the twins as he did so. They turned to each other.

"So what are they gonna do on the actual day of the betrayal?" Jey shook his head and shrugged, heading back to the main locker room after his brother. He hoped Seth and his cousin could resolve whatever issues had arisen.

XxX

Seth was angry. Well, angry might not be the right word. Livid and frustrated would be a better description. He was frustrated that memories of that night had resurfaced after all the three had done to fix things. Dean was basically Moxley for months on end during his darkest times. It should've affected him more, but Dean found it in his heart to forgive him. After all the rough patches and a very long talk that may or may not have resulted in a make out session. That was about the time the two had started progressing towards being in a relationship again. Roman, however, hadn't talked to him, looked at him, acknowledged him, or showed any kindness to him for the longest time. He gave him the cold shoulder every time they were anywhere near each other and growled out any response he gave when he absolutely had to talk to Seth. If looks could kill, Seth would've been burning in Hell a million times over years ago. Roman absolutely despised him, hated him with a passion, wished he never existed to break him into itty bitty pieces pretending to be a brother.

He continued his hurried pace until he saw a hunched over figure in a black vest on an equipment crate. Crying his eyes out. Roman Reigns did not cry. At least, he didn't cry in a place where he was so exposed and vulnerable to judging looks and criticism. Seth stopped in his tracks, taking in the heartbreaking sight before him. Roman, his Roman, was hurting. Because of him. He'd done so much to repair the damage and take away the pain he'd caused. Without being able to stop them, those excruciatingly painful memories resurfaced, knocking the wind out of him as they flashed before his eyes.

XxX

Flashback

"Joe, wait!" The oldest brother just increased his pace, putting as much distance between himself and that sellout as possible. Seth let out a broken cry as Roman left, though it sounded more like a wounded howl. The sound of the slamming door reverberated painfully off the walls of the locker room. Everything was ruined: his life, his relationship with the two people who cared about him the most, probably his career with all the shit going on in his personal life. Uncontrollable sobs wracked his body and his breathing quickened at an alarming rate. His vision got blurry and stars danced in his vision. He felt like the world was compressing against him, determined to squeeze the life and breath out of him until nothing remained. He heard faint wheezing and, before he knew it, his throat felt as if it'd been lit on fire and was tightening. A panic attack, just perfect.

Out of nowhere, he was enveloped in a strong embrace. He could barely feel it, but it was comforting to know someone was trying to ground him. Naturally, he felt his arms instantly latch onto the nearby presence. He felt gentle hands caress his black and blonde locks and wipe the excess tears from his face with a feather light touch. "Colby? Colby, can you hear me?" a raspy voice asked him, more worried than he'd ever heard. Though the voice was distant, he'd recognize it from anywhere. Seth squeezed his hand to say yes. "Okay. Focus on my voice, alright. I'm right here, you're safe with me. Just relax and try to take some deep breaths with me. In… and out. In… and out. C'mon, you're doin' great. Keep going… That's it. That's it, babe. Deep breaths." Seth felt his breathing slowly return to normal, tears starting to flow slower, grip start loosening just a tiny bit. "*breathy, quiet laugh* Awesome. Now, can you open your eyes for me?" Huh, he never noticed that he had practically glued his eyes shut to help him endure the pain. Slowly, he cracked them open and met watery, deep blue eyes. He gave a weak smile and once again threw his arms around Dean. Sounds returned to their regular volume and his eyesight returned to normal. If the situation wasn't what it was, he could've sworn a pair of angel wings were protruding from Dean's back.

"Please, Jon, can you just give me a few minutes to tell you everything? I know what it looks like, but there's an explanation, there is! No alibi, no lies, no tall tales. I'll give you the truth, just… Please, don't leave me. Please, don't leave me to suffer through this alone." Dean sneered, abruptly letting go of the man he so desperately wanted to hold in his arms forever.

"Like you just did? I understand why Ro left the way he did. If I didn't love you more than anyone else in my life, I probably woulda stormed out on you too." Seth eyes widened at the confession. "We can talk. When you give me- us... some time to think and cool down. You didn't just break us, Colby, you shattered us, physically and emotionally. Things'll never be the same. And I know that little stunt out there wasn't just another fucking storyline. How long have you been planning this?"

"It's not like that! Hunter, he threatened-"

"If you try and explain things now, my mind'll just file it away under bullshit. Like I said, give it time. You may have taken all your hurt out on me, but the both of us are still devastated. This goes deeper than you think, than you'll ever really know." Dean gingerly tried to get up, crying out at the pain in his back. Seth hurriedly scampered over and let Dean lean on him for support. The man couldn't really protest as he didn't really have a choice. When Dean was sure he could stand on his own two feet and take a few steps, he let go. He didn't bother changing out of his ring gear, grabbing his bags and starting to leave. Seth couldn't let him leave until he had the answer to his question, however.

"Wait! What do you mean it goes deeper than I know?" The Cincinnati native stopped in his tracks and, without turning around, whispered their answer.

"Because, to us you were more than a brother. You… *turns and looks Seth dead in the eyes* You were a lover."

XxX

Flashback End

Slowly, reality returned and Seth was thrown back into the present. He was leaning against a door, heavily breathing and hands shaking. 'Pull yourself together, Rollins. Don't have a panic attack. You're fine. You can do this,' he thought to himself. He took a deep breath, pushed off the door, and slowly walked over to his older brother. "Joe," he whispered, placing a hand on his shoulder. The champion's head instantly shot up, red, puffy grey eyes locking with tear filled brown ones. "What's going on? Tell me what's wrong." Roman turned away from him, muttering an incoherent response. "Don't try and lie either. You're a horrible liar."

"It's about you," he croaked, "Nothing good. I just… I can't forgive myself." Seth raised an eyebrow, clearly unsatisfied with that answer.

"You're not making a lick of sense. I don't get what got you so worked up-"

"Out there, when I got hit with that chair from behind, I just froze. My mind, it was like time stopped, took me back to that one night. I never really think about it anymore, but the chair just threw me back. That night, Colby." The half blonde's breath got stuck in his chest. "I feel so *frustrated growl* I'm disappointed in myself, I'm angry at myself, I can't… forgive myself. Even now, I can't get over how I was to you after June. We were on top of the world. We were on our way to being legends as a tag team and then you went and… changed all that, threw the plan out the window. You were everything to me, still are. I just lost faith in the off chance that my baby brother, who I loved almost more than anyone or anything, was still in there, biding his time to come back." He gave an emotionless chuckle. "And it was bad enough I only got hit twice. You completely destroyed Jon. Every hit was a blow to the heart. Every hit was you losing my trust, my respect, my… The months went by and things didn't get better, they got worse."

"Why are you beating yourself up about that? We talked about this, Joe. I don't blame you or anyone else for how you treated me after we beat Evolution. I deserved everything I got-"

"But you didn't!" he interrupted. "The boos, the death threats, the hate and criticism, the emotional toll it took on you all those months. I left you to suffer instead of staying. I agreed with all those ignorant, know it all fans who called you garbage and wanted you gone. You are my family. That means being by your side, being there for you, never losing faith, never giving up hope in you. I had no right to treat you like the scum of the Earth. I will love you, unconditionally, until the end of time. That much I know. I've always known. If I'd pledged that before…" Seth had heard enough. Before Roman could continue, Seth had him up against a wall, one hand fisted in his hair, seeing as how he was still wearing his old Shield vest, and he couldn't really grab that. Roman was too startled to realize what was happening. Soon after his back collided with the hard surface, he felt his cheek begin to sting. Seth had none too gently slapped him.

"What is wrong with you?! Do you think I care if you still think about the betrayal?!" Both of them were shocked that he'd said the two words that still affected them so much. They'd refused to say them because they caused so many emotions to come boiling to the surface. Seth tried to remain unfazed and went on. "That's a night, along with the last two years, that'll haunt both of us and Jon for the rest of our careers, maybe our lives. But guess what? We moved past it, made things right, forgave each other. Did we fully go back to the way things were before? No, not even close, but you're closer to me now than you ever were before then!" The younger lover gave a weak smile. "I would never let anything like that break us apart, not now, not ever. Never again."

"Colby…" He couldn't find the words to express his mixed feelings, so he settled for the next best thing. He pulled Seth closer and pressed a desperate kiss to his lover's soft, rosy lips. He tried to make it last as long as possible before they needed to breathe. Their lips moved over each other's fast yet gentle as they poured their feelings out into the kiss. Seth was definitely sure he felt tears this time. Whose tears were on his cheeks was what he didn't know. "Thank you, baby boy," Roman mumbled affectionately, "And I'm sor-"

"Don't. Don't apologize for anything Joe. Just… don't think about it. And don't blame yourself!" Seth turned them so that Roman could lean into him. Many would find the sight strange, the larger man being comforted by the smaller. To anyone who knew the boys on a deeper, more personal level, it was a heart melting sight. Dean was one of those people and wore a soft smile seeing the two comfort each other. When was the last time Roman had had a major emotional breakdown because of… that night? He really didn't want to ruin the moment, so he decided to take a few picture with his phone. It was rare moments like this that made him feel like an emotional chick. He didn't mind too much anymore though. The brunette heard Roman sniffle before turning towards him, a slight blush creeping into his cheeks at being caught in such an intimate and comforting moment.

"Jon." Seth looked up at his soulmate.

"*cough cough Rolleigns!* (jokingly) Don't you two look cute together. It's almost sweet. So, you guys good? Everybody back on the same page?"

"Since when did you-?"

"Yes? Then let's get back to the hotel so you two can have some make up-"

"We're not going to, Jon," Roman said, amused. Seth pouted.

"Why not? You called dibs. This'll be twice you've skipped out on me now."

"*sigh* You're not gonna let that go, are you?" Seth shook his head.

"Nope. You need some cheering up. Besides, Jon doesn't like sharing me when we're on the road. Soooo?"

"Hey! I do share you… sometimes… when I want to…"

"Exactly. Which is almost never."

"*chuckles* I didn't know you were so desperate. Alright. Jon, you won't freak out if you walk in on us, will you? We aren't exactly gonna be quiet or anything if Seth's in such a good mood..."

"Dude, I've lived through much, much worse than you two fucking in front of me. You know my horrifying life story. I think I'll be fine."

"Unless I'm on top," Seth whispered not so quietly in a not so PG tone. That turned more than a few heads that passed by, one incidentally being Shane, who had a look of confuzzled amusement on his face, as Dean slapped Seth upside the head. His brother in law was one of the co-founders of DX. Sexual innuendos and dirty comments didn't really bother him at all. He and Roman shared a laugh as Seth yanked on Dean's curls. It didn't' seem to faze him, however, as he just pulled on Seth's hair right back. The younger man yelped and Dean pressed a quick kiss to his forehead. He flashed Seth a fake oblivious look. "Ow! Babe! What was-?"

"Now you know how it feels when I try to make a joke," Dean told him with a smirk, heading towards the exit with Roman's bags. "And no kinky stuff. That's my job." With an irked sigh, Seth took Roman's hand in his and they both followed Dean out. Roman felt as if all the weight had been lifted from his shoulders, the night's earlier problems now forgotten. The… the betrayal was still something he'd have nightmares about, the act itself and the fallout afterwards. He couldn't change the past. The memories would still haunt him, for sure, but he could rest easy knowing that all had been forgiven. One day, he'd be free from the pain and guilt. The wounds would heal and the scars would fade. Maybe Roman's night would be better than he expected.

Closing A/N: Okay, in all honesty, I didn't mean for the chapter to get all angsty and overloaded with the feels. It was supposed to be just a simple hurt/comfort kind of thing, ya know? This is what happens when I promise longer chapters. Details and feels and all kinds of craziness. I tried to go for 5,000 words this time. Mission accomplished. And, before I forget to ask, does anyone have any ideas for a chapter title? I've been sitting here trying to think of one that sums up the main points of what happened to Dean and Roman on RAW. A few suggestions would be appreciated (through a PM or review).

For anyone who actually reads these author's notes, thanks for putting up with me this long. Seeing how many people read this fic, no matter how few or how many, really makes my day. Being able to write and have someone read it and leave positive feedback makes me so happy. Anyway, enough of the sappiness. Chapter 27 is in progress, slow progress, but it's progress, and plans for future chapters are as well. I've even started brainstorming for this fic's sequel, which'll be badly and briefly explained in the next batch of rambling author's notes. See you guys next update! :)