As the weekend came to an end, House ZBZ and BPO held separate meetings to discuss the new restrictions on future festivities. The new rules and regulations would have a difficult impact on the Halloween party the forthcoming week, but that hadn't stopped each house from scheming plans to move around under Student Affairs and host one of the more important and popular parties of the year.
"Eighties Horror Movies" was the theme this year. Anything from Nightmare on Elm Street to the Halloween franchise was fair game for the party, meaning endless possibilities for arguably the golden age of horror. Whether or not the party was allowed to be as big as it usually was still needed to be agreed upon by everyone participating, including hosts House BPO.
ZBZ President, Alexa Bliss, called for a meeting with her fellow sisters and newcomer pledges. The topic was mostly what they thought should be done to make sure the party went off without a hitch, but quickly fell into what costumes were being worn before they had any idea how to properly execute the festivities without getting in trouble.
"Ladies!" Alexa called over the commotion, trying to keep a level head. Overseeing a sorority was fun and challenging at the same time, but some days gave her a splitting headache she couldn't just sleep off or chase away with a glass of cold water; A dozen or so women talking at once was not helping in the slightest either. The fatigued and irritated Bliss smiled and spoke again calmer and with a gentle smile. "I'm thrilled you all found ideas for the costume contest, but there won't be a Halloween party if we don't figure out how we can host it without getting a strike from Student Affairs."
The other sisters looked at each other, muttering suggestions and shrugging their shoulders.
Alexa frowned. It wasn't solely on her to think of a solution, but this was another huge party for her house. BPO may have been hosting, but each house always attended or at least contributed in some way to keep a good relationship with each other. Being the future wife of the Pledge Chair put a little more pressure on Alexa, which only made her temples pulsate more with stress.
Liv Morgan raised her hand. "We could do a silent dance like in Atypical? Sam was hypersensitive to loud noises, so every student got headphones to listen to the music."
Alexa nodded, thinking the idea was a solid solution. "Ok. That would help avoid a noise complaint from anyone. Do you have someone who could buy about three hundred Bluetooth headphones by Thursday?"
Liv slowly lowered her hand. "Uh... no. I don't."
Alexa sighed. "Ok. That's fine. I love the idea though. It's really great." Though her spirit was starting to dwindle, Bliss' choice of words was to keep the atmosphere high. Plans may have altered, but that wasn't a reason to make everyone worry. "Anyone else have anything? Suggestions? Ideas?"
Pledge Gigi raised her hand. "We could kidnap Laringitas until after the party. Then we can let him go in Mexico or something."
Alexa faked a smile. "Wow! That's... creative. Super illegal, but good job thinking outside the box Gigi."
Alexa called for a break from the brainstorming session and headed into the kitchen for a glass of water. Almost going unnoticed by her best friend, AJ Lee was sitting at the kitchen table nursing a glass of orange juice and whiskey.
"How'd it go?" AJ muttered over the rim of her drink.
"Everything's fine..." Alexa told over her shoulder, filling a cup with water before drinking it down in less than a second and re-filling it. "No reason to panic yet. The party is in five days and no one has any idea how we're going to do it without Student Affairs losing its mind, but I'm sure we'll figure something out."
AJ sipped greedily at her cocktail. "I say let BPO figure their shit out, then we steal everyone away when they shit the bed."
Alexa chuckled and kissed the top of her friend's head. "We need you at 'chaotic good' this week, hon. Save 'chaotic evil' for Homecoming."
AJ shrugged her shoulders as Alexa took a seat at the table. Becky stepped into the kitchen. The Irishwoman gave a quick "hello" to her sisters as she went about her task.
Alexa spoke to her best friend. "Are you ok? You're drinking more whiskey sours than usual."
"Yeah, I'm fine," said AJ as she crunched some ice between her teeth.
The answer was too brief to deter Alexa from pressing for more information. "Are you sure? I didn't see you during the meeting. I think you came right for the booze when you got here."
AJ nodded, trying to think of a quick response that would satisfy her friend's prying behavior. "School's just kicking my ass lately. I didn't sell enough paintings to have cash left over for nuggies. Plus Dana is obsessed with this guy she's been hanging out with, so I might as well be a virgin again."
Alexa chuckled ruefully, resting a hand on AJ's wrist. "I'm sorry about Dana, babe. But, who knows, you might meet someone at the Halloween party? I'm sure there's someone for you there."
AJ shrugged. "I can talk any girl into a little casual 'over-the-panties lesbionics' with enough persuasion and alcohol. Maybe I'll just wait until I meet up with Punk and let him give it to me for a few weeks."
Alexa chuckled again, but still felt worried for AJ's wellbeing. "See? You're already coming up with great ideas. Now we just gotta figure out how to get the Halloween party going without Student Affairs freaking out."
"Kidnap Laringitis and drop him in the desert," AJ suggested.
Alexa shook her head. "That's what Gigi said. And, before you ask, no you can't do that. This party is important, but no one should be going to prison over it."
AJ shrugged her shoulders. "Suit yourself, sweet tits."
Truth be told, AJ couldn't give two shits about the upcoming BPO party. After what happened with Toni a few weeks back, AJ would rather gargle thumbtacks and wrestle a grizzly bear before she had to share a room with either Seth's lying bullshit or his stupid girlfriend. All leftover feelings from Cabo had been cast into the wind. AJ only wanted to run Seth and Toni down with Rollins' prized Impala, then dump the stupid car in Lake Backlund and wash away everything she did with Seth courtesy of a bottle of Jack.
AJ's eyes glazed over as more murderous dreams filtered through her brain. Alexa had been none the wiser to the relationship change between Toni, Seth, and AJ. To no fault of her own, Alexa was mostly too focused on student-teaching and ZBZ to really notice anything else.
Becky sat at the table with Alexa and AJ. The fiery-haired Irishwoman came alone to ZBZ when Charlotte refused to tag along. No amount of cheering up or pep-talk could get Charlotte out of bed and into the shower despite Becky's best efforts. Alongside the fear of more ridicule for her most recent scandal, Charlotte's father was still under the microscope as his trial was once again postponed and gained more national attention. All of this culminated in Charlotte becoming a hermit of sorts and only coming out to go to class.
"Did you come up with anything, Becky?" Alexa asked with hope lacing her words.
Becky chuckled dryly. "Not a single one, Lex. Although I do like AJ's idea."
AJ nodded her head upon hearing her name, but her eyes remained glassy as a hypothetical scene of Toni and Seth being eaten by sharks played through her head.
Alexa sighed, the sign of defeat ironically soothing her pulsating headache a bit. "Ok. I mean, it is BPO's job to figure most of this shit out. We don't technically have to help out, but Dean is my husband and I know BPO means a lot to him..."
"Future husband," AJ muttered, eyes like porcelain.
Alexa lightly rolled her eyes. "You get what I mean, AJ."
"I'm sure t'e boys are thinkin' of somethin'," Becky assured, picking at the salad she'd prepared for herself. "Do what boys do best and defy authority for t'e fun of it..."
"Gin!"
Dean frowned. "That's weird since we're playing Texas Hold 'Em..."
The boys of BPO were enjoying their Sunday morning with a cookout for mainly the members of the organization, with the exception of a few girlfriends, un-rushed friends, or Jimmy and Jey who were visiting with Sigma Nu. This sunny and warm morning happened to be the morning that DXA made their pledges march down the entire Greek Row in their underwear as part of their initiation, but Kevin swore he had no idea that was going on when he set up operations in front of House BPO.
"Which would explain why I'm playing poker on the front lawn," Dean thought as the many DXA hopefuls strutted by behind a slow-moving pickup with DXA president Kelly Blank watching on. Ambrose did admit to himself that a lot of the young women in his sights were extremely attractive and he might've taken a chance at some of them if he weren't engaged. Despite that, he decided not to participate in the catcalls and whistles like his BPO brothers were.
Gable, who had wrongfully been playing Gin this entire time, toppled over from his chair onto the lawn in a drunken slump. Kevin rolled his eyes and collected Gable's chips, then signaled over Axel to join them. Already playing were Seth, Roman, Zack, and Sami.
Zack kept his eyes glued to his cards but the straining in his neck proved he was only human at the end of the day.
"Eyes on your cards, Ro," Seth chuckled.
Roman took his eyes away from the crowd of barely-dressed girls. "I'm just looking for anyone we might know. Jey said a few girls from back home were coming here."
"The Twins' class didn't have any girls like this," Dean recalled, shuffling out a new round of playing cards. "Don't reckon the church girls are out there showing off like that."
Seth shrugged. "There was that one blonde chick that liked hanging out around the bars after curfew. She wore those low-cut shirts and skirts that were so short you could see her fallopian tubes."
"The one that went missing for two years?" Roman asked with a dry chuckle.
"Real nice, Rollins," Kevin sarcastically put with a slow head shake.
Sami turned away from the game to yell at the pledges, who were supposed to be doing "'bows and toes" but most of them had been faking for a few minutes to stare at the parade of Victoria's Secret. Otis, bless his soul, had been keeping up with Adam and Kyle with a surprising amount of core stamina. Luke Harper and Luke Gallows had been assigned to keep watch over everyone but the DXA pledges distracted them.
"Isn't it pretty fucked that we can't throw a party but DXA can still prance around in their underwear?" Dean asked the table.
Kevin answered, "I'm not the one to be bitching about gender equality to, Ambrose."
The boys of BPO started off that morning with a brainstorming session on what to do about the party on Thursday. So far nothing was brought to light to fight the new regulations put in place... well, no legal ideas came to fruition. Darby, a quiet and gloomy type, suggested that they kidnap Laurinaitis and kept him locked in the Gatorade cooler until Friday morning. Owens called an end to the meeting after that and sentenced all pledges to 'bows and toes.
"What the fuck are we gonna do?" Seth asked the two older boys at the table.
Kevin scoffed. "Me? I'm gonna win this fuckin' hand."
"The party, dude," Seth replied.
"Let's just chill for a second," Kevin set his cards down and sipped at his can of beer. "We got four more days to come up with some shit. This isn't the first time BPO has had to replan at the last second, and it sure as shit won't be the last. Just take it easy today, drink some booze, get the creative juices flowin', and we'll think of something. Is that alright with you, shitbag?"
Dean and Roman snickered at their friend's expense. Seth shrugged and nodded his head but didn't say anything; A string of NSFW texts from Toni were keeping his spirits too high to be upset now anyway.
Jimmy and Jey trotted down the front steps of BPO, each with a woman on their arm.
"Y'all leavin' already?" Dean asked his adoptive cousins.
"Yeah, we best get goin'," Jimmy said, smirking at whatever Naomi just whispered to him. "Nay's got movie tickets for two, then we're goin' to Red Roosters."
"Shit, alright, I get it," Dean chuckled.
"Be good," Roman told his cousins, bumping his fist with each of them.
Jimmy and Jey walked off towards Naomi's convertible. After their failed attempt to bring the twins to BPO, Dean and Roman had seen less and less of their cousins with a few exceptions like football practice, prior to games, or at Roadie's. Roman still wasn't sure how Sigma Nu got to the twins before BPO did, but Dean chalked it up to "being pussy whipped" and figured Naomi had something to do with it.
"Who's with Jey?" Roman asked his brother.
Dean shrugged. "Fuck if I know. Uce has a new chick with him almost every week. Rikishi didn't have the same talk with them about respecting women?"
Roman chuckled. "I don't think he had the 'sex talk' with them yet. Shit, he'd kick Jimmy's ass if he saw him in that car."
"Shit, I might beat him to it," Dean muttered with a chuckle.
Flair Hall, named after one of the most hated men in the nation behind the president and a few celebrities going through the wringer, housed dozens of SU's student body. Most of those students went to class, participated in extracurricular activities, and met their friends at the local hot spots.
Most, as in not Charlotte Flair. The previously proud and stubborn blonde curled up under her quilt on the living room sofa, bitterly watching replays of her father's testimony as he dug himself a grave before the entire nation. Life was all but impossible at this point, thanks in part, but not limited to, her apparent stalker and paparazzi stooping to a new low and waiting for her by her car and near campus instead of using the stealthy approach. Charlotte hated that Officer Traylor wasn't allowed to beat any of them, but she still thanked the over-worked man every time he answered one of her distress calls.
If her professors weren't so understanding, Charlotte would be failing everything right now. She hadn't left her apartment since she found her car covered in hateful graffiti. Becky did the laundry and picked up food now. Most of her classwork was done online now, thankfully without the need of video calls without her teachers. The only thing Charlotte left her bedroom for was using the bathroom. The only reason she was sitting on the couch, drowning in her own self-pity, was because Becky agreed to bring lunch as long as Charlotte came out of her room.
Hiding and sulking weren't healthy, and Charlotte knew that. Her friends started to wonder where she was and worried about her. Some came to visit, but others didn't. Charlotte didn't blame them. She understood why they wouldn't; She was practically nothing and deserved the constant hate and harassment she received no matter what she did.
Becky unlocked the front door and stepped into the room.
Charlotte's heart fluttered. Then there was this red-headed dork that loved Charlotte regardless. Through the gray that was her life, there was this Irish beam of light beckoning to her.
"Hey..." Charlotte croaked, realizing her throat was dry, crying out for some water.
"'Ello my love," Becky spoke so softly. Why was she so perfect? It was almost unfair to be as great as Becky was, in Charlotte's opinion.
"Did you bring lunch?" Charlotte asked.
"Well since ya got out yer bedroom, yes," Becky brought a brown paper bag into the living room. She flipped on the lights, bringing some (literal) brightness to the room.
Charlotte blinked against the lights. She'd kept the curtains drawn for so long that the artificial lights from her ceiling strained her eyes. Probably not a good sign about her wellbeing, but Charlotte was perfectly fine staying inside as long as it took to shake away her father's reputation.
"Mexican burrito with extra sour cream, hold the beans," Becky repeated Charlotte's request, handing over the paper bag as she settled on the couch beside her girlfriend.
"You're the fucking best, Bex," Charlotte muttered, almost on the verge of tears. The little acts of kindness against how cold and bitter everything else in the world was the only thing keeping Charlotte from falling over the edge. But that's just how Becky was: kind and considerate.
"Nah, not me," Becky playfully rebutted. "Jus' doin' me job."
Charlotte set her food aside. She hooked her arm around Becky's neck and pulled her close. Charlotte brought her lips to Becky's, drawing out a lengthy kiss with a tiny hint of tongue probing her bottom lip.
"You're the best ever, baby," Charlotte assured, whispering like what she was declaring needed to be kept secret.
Becky's cheeks burned a light shade of crimson. "Only fer you, my love."
Charlotte held her lips against Becky's forehead, inhaling her scent deeply to hang on as long as she could. Becky winced and lightly pushed back.
"What's wrong?" Charlotte asked.
Becky smiled sheepishly. "Char... I luv ya, a lot, but ya 'aven't showered in t'ree days..."
Charlotte rolled her eyes. Here she thought Becky was a second away from breaking her heart, but she was only complaining about showering yet again.
"Babe, it hasn't been three days," Charlotte insisted.
"I gave that sweatshirt on Wednesday. So, really, it's almost been four," Becky smiled softly. "If ya shower, I'll let ya cuddle?"
Charlotte tutted her tongue. "Like you'd ever say no to me."
"When ya smell like Finn..."
Charlotte gasped loudly, sending Becky into a fit of laughter. "I do not smell like Finn!"
"Aye, maybe yer right... but maybe ya smell like Finn after a baseball game," Becky quipped.
Charlotte turned her head away to hide a grin, still feigning offense. "I thought you loved me!"
"I do. I jus' wanted ta see ya smile," Becky's soft eyes lifted with a smile when Charlotte turned to her again. "I miss yer smile, lass. It's one of me favorite t'ings about ya."
"What else do you love about me?" Charlotte asked, trying to bait more compliments out of her lover.
Becky looked her girl in the eyes. "Well, two things I love more than yer smile."
Charlotte groaned heavily, baiting more laughter from Becky.
"You are the worst!" Charlotte kidded, lightly pushing Becky away. "How did the ZBZ thing go?"
Becky shrugged. "It was alrigh'. Boys still don' know what ta do about the party. 'Lexa is loosin' her mind."
Charlotte shook her head. "I can't believe Laurinaitis is being such a douche. Usually, I'd just get my dad to do something but..."
Both girls turned their attention to the live broadcast of the trial. The journalist was only just recapping everything that had happened so far - nothing new, just the same old shit.
Becky switched off the TV. Charlotte sighed heavily, looking tiredly at her lunch.
"I hate this so fucking much," Charlotte said, a heartbreaking sound of defeat in her voice. "I hate Ric, I hate school, I hate the paparazzi, I hate that asshole that ruined my car, I hate this stupid fucking burrito!"
Becky frowned. "I got you that stupid fuckin' burrito."
Charlotte shook her head, but her smile betrayed her. "I don't know what I'd do without you. You're my rock, Bex."
"And yer me lobster," Becky whispered, smiling brighter when Charlotte blushed. "You are. And you'll realize it soon."
"Maybe," Charlotte giggled.
"But..."
Charlotte rolled her eyes. "God! Fine! I'll take a shower!" She picked up her food from the table. "But I'm eating first. Then I'm eating you!"
Becky laughed. "Oh yeah? You sure you don't want a visit from yer new friend? Mr. Pokey, eh?"
Charlotte rolled her eyes hard enough to make her temples pulsate, but it was only to make Becky laugh hard enough to snort. Charlotte bit into her burrito, then kissed her girl on the cheek.
Not a lot was known about Tessa Blanchard. Who she was, where she was from, what her favorite color was, and things of the sort seemed to be a mystery. It didn't help that she seemed to change her story every time someone asked. If she was a private person, then that was perfectly fine. Some people close to her just wished she would be more open about things.
Roman Reigns liked to think he'd grown close to the girl with who he spent most of his free time. It hadn't really occurred to Roman that he didn't know a lot if anything, about Tessa when Dean asked offhandedly what Tessa was majoring in. Roman had no clue what to tell his brother.
Reigns did mean to dig a little further on Tessa, just to have some basic knowledge. In hindsight, he should've known that "come cuddle with me" would lead to something more than that, especially with his newest lover.
"Aww, baby," Tessa purred, mopping up the mess from Roman with her fingertips. "Missed me that much, huh?"
Roman sighed, his brain still numb from his orgasm. "I... yeah, Tess. You're the best. I completely forgot what I was going to ask you."
Tessa shrugged. "Maybe you can think about it for a minute? I need to wash my hands."
Tessa's bright smile remained glued to her face until she stepped into the bathroom. She made sure to lock it behind her, before stepping in front of the sink.
"Yeah, Tess. You're the best," Tessa hissed to herself, speaking in a low baritone. "Uh, honey, can I maybe, I dunno, cum on your tits again? Fucks sake."
Tessa scrubbed the cum from her hands. She checked under her fingernails and gagged at the scent Roman's "release" left on her fingers. For such an athlete, she thought that maybe he ate some fruit to make his cum taste like anything but motor oil, but Tessa would be wrong to assume things.
Tessa's phone rumbled in her pocket.
"Yeah?" Tessa asked the caller.
"You have a call request from Mecklenburg County Correctional Institute. Would you like to accept the call?"
"Yes! Of course..." Tessa smiled at her reflection, stretching her lips nearly ear to ear. "Hi, daddy... I have been watching the news... jury is still out, but I have a good feeling about this... yes, daddy, I've been focusing on school. How have... oh, you only have a few minutes? Yeah, no, I can talk to you tomorrow... sure. I love you too."
Tessa sighed heavily, almost on the verge of tears.
"Don't cry, my diamond. It'll only be for a little while..."
Tessa chuckled to herself. Maybe those words weren't entirely true, but it was something to keep Tessa going through the day.
Roman looked up from the fridge when Tessa stepped out. "Hey, babe, do you want some of the leftover chicken? I'm gonna re-heat it."
Tessa slapped a fake smile on her face. "Only if I get to choke on your bone, stud."
Roman chuckled. "Sure, babe. I'll hate that a lot."
"I wish..." Tessa muttered, rolling her eyes when Roman turned his back to her.
With just one more day until yet another long week of school, football, and anything else the universe might so happen to decide to throw at him, Seth Rollins just wanted one day where he could relax and have some time to himself.
Toni was with a study group; Dean was with Alexa; Roman was fuck-knows-where with Tessa; Adam wasn't anywhere to be found. Seth had a pretty problem-free afternoon ahead for him. He planned to drink some beer, maybe watch a little football, perhaps play some video games, maybe give Toni a call and see if she wanted to do something for dinner later or just spend the night at his place. It didn't matter - Seth had already convinced himself he needed a stress-free day and that was what he planned on doing.
Seth popped the top on his second beer that day (at home at least). He put the finishing touches on his sandwich, added some chips to the side, then grabbed a few extra beers just so he didn't need to get up at all as long as possible.
KNOCK KNOCK
"Shit..." Seth muttered, almost sitting down just as a knock came at his door. He set his replenishments on the coffee table and headed for the door.
Just as Seth began reaching for the doorknob, the front door swung open. AJ, her long flowing ebony hair tucked behind her head in her hoodie, slipped almost undetected into the room before Seth had even realized she was there.
"AJ-"
"Before you say anything stupid, I just want to let you know that I tried to talk myself out of coming by," AJ wasn't her usual playful self. Her tone was deadly serious, with no hints of humor or any of her signature sarcastic putdowns. "I fucking prayed to every known god, deity, and grand fucking creator that something would happen so I didn't have to come here today. But here the fuck I am."
Seth genuinely feared for his life. Before, when he and AJ were on relatively good terms, the fear he felt around her was mostly coated with sexual undertones and eventually led to something regarding that feeling. But now, with the fury burning hotter in AJ's eyes unlike Seth had ever seen before, he kept running through his options for the quickest escape from his apartment if he needed to flee; Unfortunately, the window was probably his only option that didn't result in a butterfly knife through his spine.
"Ok..." Seth began cautiously, piecing his sentence together as carefully as he could. "Is this about what happened at the lake?"
AJ's eyes widened. "Are you fucking serious?"
Seth took a step back. "Ok. Ok, it's not about the lake. Is-is it about Toni? She's really pissed at you, and I can't control what she does."
"True. But you control the bullshit you tell her..." AJ sighed. "You... fucking told her I raped you, Seth? Are you serious? You told me that you knew it was me, and we could blame it on being drunk if we got caught. But..."
"AJ, I told her everything that happened that night," Seth assured, flinching a little when AJ tucked her hands in her pouch.
AJ rolled her eyes. "Dude, chill. It's just Francine..." She withdrew a switchblade, popped the blade, then stuck it in the countertop. "She's my self-defense knife. If I wanted to kill you, I would've brought something bigger... and sharper."
Seth exhaled, oddly feeling a little relaxed. "Ok. But I did. I told Toni everything. She's the one that told me it was assault, and I don't want to lose her so..."
"You let her think that your ex sexually assaulted you?" AJ was hurt. She didn't need to say it for it to be shown. Her dark eyes were laced in tears and her bottom lips trembled with every other word she spoke.
"AJ, you didn't assault me..." Seth said. "I mean, if anything, how many times did we hook up when we were fucked up? Like, seriously. We should probably both be in jail."
AJ looked away but chuckled. "The fucking rooftop party. Billie told me she had a bad feeling about you. Who woulda thought that she was onto something?"
Seth dropped his gaze from the tiny cheerleader. For a moment, he actually felt guilty for the way he treated her. Not the "please don't go, I hate being alone" kind of guilt he felt when he cheated on Dana and Zelina. Genuine, heart-wrenching guilt. Seth liked to think that he lived a good life so far with zero regrets, but breaking AJ's heart could be his first.
Seth spoke again. "AJ, I do care about you and I love you. You're one of the best people I've ever met. I just really want to be with Toni right now."
"The girl who thinks I'm some kind of sexual predator?" AJ questioned, shaking her head.
"Yeah, but I-"
The front door opened again. Toni, first seeing Seth, smiled until she noticed the other person in the room, to which her grin melted into a frown.
"What the fuck are you doin' here?" Toni barked.
Seth stepped in. "Toni, wait a second-"
"No, what the fuck is she doin' here?" Toni repeated, slamming the door closed. "I told you I'd kick yer little arse, you fuckin' twat-"
"Excuse me?" AJ shot back.
Seth put himself between both women. "Guys, just chill. AJ, can you please go?"
AJ furrowed her brow. "Are you serious? I didn't do anything!"
"Oh, you have some fuckin' nerve," Toni growled.
Seth opened the door. "Please, AJ?"
AJ swallowed the lump in her throat, nodding quickly. She bowed her head to keep anyone from seeing the tears rolling down her cheeks.
Seth closed the door. "Baby, I can explain."
"Oh, you fucking better," Toni warned.
AJ sped through campus, keeping her eyes glued to the ground. She didn't know where she was going. She wasn't even sure if she had anywhere to go anymore. Sure, there was her apartment but that was cold and empty with no one to comfort her except Nacho and Jeff. AJ just wanted someone to hold her and tell her everything was going to be ok. Alexa was still at ZBZ; Seth was as good as dead to her at this point.
KNOCKKNOCKKNOCK!
The rapid knocking freaked Brian out a little since he had been enjoying a lazy Sunday with his girlfriend thus far. He gave his girl a quick kiss on the cheek, then ventured to the door to see what all the commotion was about.
"Hey-"
"I'mAJit'sreallynicetomeetyouIlikeyourhairbutIreallyneedtotalktoDanarightnow!"
The tiny woman wasn't making much sense, but Brian stepped aside and let her into the apartment.
"Uh, babe, you got someone here for you!" Brian called out.
Dana looked up just in time to catch AJ when she dove into her arms.
"AJ?" She asked, cradling the sobbing woman in her arms.
"Just hold me," AJ cried, burying her face in her ex's neck. "I'm so sorry I'm a fucking disappointment. Just please hold me."
Dana nodded, softly shushing her ex. She nodded that everything was ok to Brian, who looked to be about as worried and confused as Dana.
Back at Seth's apartment, the aforementioned Rollins held his girl against his chest.
"You're a fucking asshole, Seth," Toni whispered, nestling closer to Seth's chest.
"I know..." Seth agreed, holding tightly to his girl, his tone nearly deadpan monotone. In his mind, he was elsewhere, chasing after AJ and begging her to come back. But, alas, he was in his kitchen with a different girl he cared for without any signs of stopping. He just wished there was a way to have both without breaking the other's heart.