CJ, Dean and Roman found themselves watching Seth sleep the next morning. Bear had gone to sleep with Seth, which left the door wide open and caught Roman's eye as he went down for breakfast, which in turn caught the couple's eye when they were planning on heading out for an early morning run around the neighborhood. But they all found interest in the way Seth cuddled with Bear and fussed a bit in his sleep.
"Do we wake him up?" Dean whispered, looking to his cohorts curiously.
"Let him sleep. Before he found the bottle, he probably was sleeping too well." CJ reasoned, looking to Roman for confirmation. The Samoan nodded, his eyes never leaving Seth's beaten body. Despite all the torment and the numerous beat downs Seth had helped The Authority put his body through, that was still his younger brother. His greedy idiot of a younger brother, but still. And it was his job as the oldest to help the younger see their mistakes and lead them to the right decisions. He still does that with Dean and now that Seth was back, he needed the guidance.
It sounded so weird to him to think that. Seth was back. He was home. With his real family. He'd admit that he was a bit wary over Seth being around CJ after the events of June Second and the effect it had on the young mother, but he knew Dean would be watching closely. Dean was always watching her closely.
It was cute, really, and he was happy that his brother found "the one" for him and that she actually loved him back. Dean deserved that kind of happiness after all the curveballs life had thrown at him and Roman was glad it was CJ who provided that for him. She wouldn't ask too much of him and he would try not to ask too much of her because they were both terrified to lose each other and it just worked well for them.
"We should probably go somewhere else so he doesn't wake up to us staring at him and feel like an alien." CJ suggested, looking between the two men and gently tugging on Dean's hand. He nodded his agreement, looking up at Roman just in time to see him nod, as well.
"We're going on a run, you don't mind listening for her do you?" Dean asked Roman as the trio headed down the stairs.
"Not at all. Go get your run on and take some water with you."
"If she does wake up there's-"
"Diapers in the cabinet and milk in the little fridge thing. Bottle on the warmer fifteen seconds." Roman cut off CJ, smirking when she high fived him before she caught the water bottle Dean threw at her. "And I have to be mindful of where she got her shots because she might still be tender."
"We shouldn't be gone too long."
"Take your time and enjoy your time together."
"Thank you, big man." Dean beamed as he put his baseball hat on backwards and all but dragged CJ out of the house. It was then that Roman took a moment and looked around at the house and noticed how much homier it felt than the last time he was there. They had a few pictures scattered around on the walls and Roman noticed that one in the living room was of them taken the night after Extreme Rules after CJ and Dean had returned from the Exotic Express. Everyone was wearing a feather boa and they were laughing, but Roman couldn't remember who had taken the picture. It was the perfect candid and he wanted a copy.
There was the Christmas card photo of the baby and dog in the living room, as well, along with a few others in the house. But his all time favorite was the photo strip that they had blown up and put on canvas that hung in the entry hall. He knew it was when they had first stared actually hanging out and it was probably the most adorable thing the two had ever done. Dean had told him that it was in those moments he knew that CJ was more to him than just some girl Regal wanted him to look after, which Roman translated to Dean starting the process of falling in love with CJ.
"Where's Dean?" Seth asked from seemingly out of nowhere, startling Roman out of his thoughts as he looked away from the picture to the two toned man. Seth was holding Bear in his arms like the big baby the Newfoundland was and still looking tired. "Sorry."
"Don't worry about it. He's out running with CJ."
"Oh. I thought we were all going to talk?"
"It's four in the morning, Seth." Roman stated, not missing the way Seth's eyes widened. "You're tired. Go back to sleep."
"But-"
"CJ would want you well rested so you can play with the baby later. Go sleep."
"Alright. Those two know that this guy is a big baby, right?"
"Probably. But that little guy was ready to rip a delivery guy's leg off for perving on CJ."
"What were they getting delivered?"
"Gym stuff for the basement. Stop stalling and go to bed, Seth." Roman ordered, smirking as Seth cursed under his breath. "Are you having issues sleeping?"
"I usually drank myself to sleep so going to bed sober and staying asleep is tough."
"It'll get better, Seth."
"Why haven't you punched me in the face yet? I deserve it, but you guys are being all nice and-"
"Because you're not going to get better if we treat you like shit and we all want you to be better." Roman interrupted, going to sit on the couch and wasn't surprised when Seth followed. Bear squirmed out of Seth's arms and trotted over to his bed in the corner of the living room, watching both men tiredly. "You may have done some fucked up shit to all three of us, but you're still family and we're not going to turn our backs on you in your time of need. That's not how family works."
Seth could only nod, staring down at his feet. He was honestly ashamed of how he went about trying to get ahead in the game, and especially ashamed over cheating on CJ. He knew that his actions further messed with Dean's and CJ's already warped mindsets and mistrust in other people and that made him feel really bad because it probably made their relationship difficult from time to time. He screwed them over, all of them. Driven CJ to tears and broke Dean and Roman down physically while CJ broke mentally. He had a lot of nerve calling them for help, and knew that he didn't deserve their kindness.
"I'm a shithead." Seth muttered, shutting his eyes tight when he felt tears welling up.
"Yeah." Roman agreed, small smile on his face as his hand came to rest on Seth's shoulder. "But you're our shithead, and that's okay."
After their run and a very steamy shower, Dean and CJ got dressed and headed downstairs to see Seth laying on the floor with Bear, having a stare down of sorts while Roman played peek-a-boo with Olivia. CJ couldn't help but smile as she leaned into her boyfriend, enjoying how right everything felt. It was as if the stars had aligned and given her what she wanted. But she knew that they still had to talk to Seth about their plan and his drinking problem before everything could feel truly as it should. But that was an attainable goal. Seth calling meant that he had put where he knew he had to be and who he knew he needed to be with in front of what he thought The Authority would think, and if he was willing to turn on The Authority then he'd be back for good. It wouldn't necessarily mean that The Shield was back, but it would mean that Seth had a brain and was using it correctly.
"So what's for breakfast?" Dean asked, interrupting the peaceful calm and bringing all attention to him and CJ. Seth tilted his head, chuckled when Bear mimicked the head tilt, and Roman shrugged. Dean looked down at CJ, who looked up at him until he sighed. "I'll call somewhere to see if they deliver."
"Or we can just suck it up and cook." CJ suggested, making Dean groan. "You love cooking."
"Yeah, I love cooking for you. Those two fuckers will clean out the fridge." The blonde complained, pointing to Seth and Roman and waving his finger between the two. "And freezer. And the pantry."
"Your pantry is fucking huge." Roman defended, which only made Dean nod. "And it's pretty stocked."
"Thats my point. Thank you for realizing."
"When did you start saying 'pantry'?" Seth asked, sitting up to look at Dean while CJ wandered into the kitchen. "And I don't eat that much."
"Bullshit you don't." Dean and Roman spoke in unison, to which CJ chuckled to herself while going through the fridge.
As the three men continued to bicker like old times, CJ started cracking the eggs into a bowl. Her breakfast cooking ability was limited, but she'd be able to make eggs and bacon with some toast. Hopefully it'd be enough for the three behemoths she called men. She knew how long the three could go on like that and knew that she had plenty of time- especially when Dean started the story of when they went to an iHop and ended up being there for three and a half hours because Seth kept finding things that he wanted to try on the menu. She had heard the story three times because Dean liked to ramble and tell her stories about old Shield days when he was dog tired but wanted to stay up with her. It was cute and she didn't mind it one bit.
"...Ambrose you know that-"
"Breakfast is ready!" CJ called from the dining room table once she set down the last plate. The guys had quite a bit more food than she did, but they had their appetites and she wasn't that hungry. All three men turned to face her, watching as she went to the living room and took Olivia from Roman, carrying her to the table with the men following behind.
"How did you do that?" Roman asked, looking at CJ before looking to Dean. "How did she do that?"
"She's some kind of magical being, I'm telling you." Seth reasoned, pointing his fork at CJ. "I've been saying it since I first saw her work in the ring. There's no way anybody can be that quiet on those mats."
"I appreciate the praise, but you guys get wrapped up in yourselves when you're bickering for bickering's sake." CJ informed with a smirk, looking between the three men as they exchanged glances with one another. "An earthquake could split the house in two, and you guys would bring that into your argument without missing a beat."
"We don't bicker, we sort out our issues." Dean corrected before shoveling a pile of eggs into his mouth.
"No, you bicker." She commented, nodding her head slightly. "You 'sorting out your issues' is done on the side of the highway. With your fists, and then whoever was in the wrong buys the first round at the bar after you clean up."
Not one of the men at the table could argue and CJ smiled down at Olivia while ignoring her plate. She knew that she had to eat, but she had no desire to eat the small portions on her plate. Roman noticed this and kicked Dean under the table to get his attention and then pointed his fork at CJ. Dean got the gist and put some eggs on his fork before looking to Roman again.
"Hey CJ?"
"What's-" She was stopped short by Dean shoving his fork in her mouth and then Roman forcing her to chew by placing his hand beneath her chin and "helping" her chew. Seth wasn't expecting this but he couldn't deny how great it felt to be sitting at that table and being able to watch the antics unfold right before his eyes.
"Eat your breakfast. You worked so hard to cook it." Dean stated, pointing his fork at his girlfriend. CJ only nodded, adjusting Olivia so she could actually have a hand free to eat.
"You're left handed?" Roman asked, watching CJ with interest as she started to eat.
"Ambidextrous." Dean and Seth responded in unison before looking to each other.
"Haven't you looked me up on Wikipedia, Roman?" CJ asked with a smirk, knowing that both Dean and Seth had. For what reason she wasn't sure, but she knew that she'd never told either of them about being ambidextrous.
"Babygirl, I'm not going to google you because I miss you. I'll just call."
"I genuinely appreciate it."
"We should talk business while we're all at the table." Dean suggested, pulling his phone out of his pocket. "Operation: Screw The Authority."
"Shouldn't we work on getting Seth sober, first?" Roman asked, looking around the table. CJ nodded her agreement, looking to Seth when he only shrugged.
"Can't we do both at the same time?"
"I can handle getting sober as long as I'm near a gym." Seth stated, noticing the way the three looked around at each other. "I just need the distractions and turning on Stephanie those monkeys should work for me."
"You can just stay here. We've got gym equipment." Dean stated, looking to CJ for confirmation. "Plus I'd like to keep an eye on you to make sure you don't squeal on us."
"I can work with that. My mom won't mind if-"
"You can bring the dogs here." CJ interrupted. She missed Kevin and Lola and wouldn't mind having them at their home. She knew Dean didn't care as long as Olivia wasn't affected. "You'd probably be more comfortable having them with you here."
"Yeah, we have a dog so it's no big deal." Dean stated, to which Seth nodded his agreement with a grateful smile on his face.
"I appreciate it. Now, Operation: Screw The Authority?" Seth asked, making Dean smirk as he unlocked his phone. "How much of this is on me?"
"It's pretty evenly divided amongst the four of us. But I've got a question for you, Seth."
"Shoot."
"Did you sign anything with those dicks about working with them?"
"Nah, it's was a handshake deal."
"Good to hear. We'll be signing a deal about this plan, though."
CJ watched carefully from the living room while Seth looked around. Dean and Roman had gone to get stuff that Dean had ordered but needed to pick up in the store, leaving her with her ex and partial father of her child. She knew Seth would never hurt her, but that didn't stop her from being wary around him. They had exchanged some very hurtful and low blows in the past, and she wasn't sure that she'd be able to fight back if he were to try something. Not that he'd try anything with the baby asleep upstairs, but she could never be too sure.
Her father taught her to never underestimate the amount of evil in one man when he tried ruining her career.
"You can relax, babe, I'm not going to jump on you." Seth commented, without even looking over in her direction. She tilted her head, but said nothing as he looked at the picture of Olivia and Bear. "She's going to grow up to look just like you."
"How can you tell?"
"Remember that morning after I had come home from the European tour and you told me you loved me for the first time?" He asked, looking back as he heard her stand from her seat on the couch. She moved to stand beside him, nodding slowly as she did so. "You showed me your baby picture, among others."
"Oh yeah."
"But she's beautiful, CJ. You and Dean, you guys made something beautiful."
"And you, too, Sethie." CJ spoke softly, gently placing her hand on his arm. It was then that she realized that he had been remarkably pleasant all day, and not acting like somebody who was withdrawing from alcohol. "Have you been drinking today?"
"There's a bottle in my suitcase. I was going to dump it out but I was afraid I'd end up getting hostile."
"Seth..."
"I know. Delaying progress. But at least I made this slip up in the beginning and not two weeks later."
"Don't you dare try reasoning with me, Rollins." CJ scolded, lightly hitting his arm. "Go get it."
"Why?"
"Because I'm going to watch you pour it down the drain."
"Why? It's a perfectly good bottle, CJ."
"Think of it as symbolism. You're dumping the bad shit out of your life starting tonight. Alcoholism and The Authority."
"Alright." Seth sighed, patting her lower back before heading up the stairs. CJ pulled her phone from her pocket and saw that she had a text from Dean and one from Brock- both about training.
Only Brock's was a bit more appealing than Dean's regarding punching bags.
'Interested in learning the Kimura Lock?'
"Fuck yes, I am." CJ whispered to herself, typing her reply to the beast before texting Dean back about dumping Seth's bottle down the drain and wanting him home ASAP because she felt weird being with Seth alone. Not in danger by any means, but just weird. She opted to leave telling him about Brock wanting to teach her the Kimura Lock until he was home and heavily buttered up with love and massages since she wasn't sure how Dean would take Brock wanting to train her in addition to what she would already be learning from him and Roman.
"So, you're really coming back?" Seth asked as he joined her in the kitchen, setting the half-full bottle on the counter.
"I'm really coming back."
"That's good. We need actual talent on the roster." He mumbled, gently patting her back. "Who do I talk to about being allowed to teach you some new tricks?"
"That would be Ambrose the trainer."
"Does he not let you make your own decisions?"
"He does, but he wants to train me so if I just said yes without talking to him first that wouldn't be fair to him and might hurt his feelings." She explained, noticing that his hand hadn't left her lower back. "That and if he doesn't trust you then I wouldn't put him through any unnecessary worrying."
"I can understand that." Seth mumbled, stepping back from her and picking the bottle up. "I just wish things were different."
"I just wish June Second never happened. The three of us could've been happy, Seth! Happy together and maybe, just maybe, we'd have both twins."
"Are you putting the blame for that on me?" Seth asked, shoving the bottle neck down the drain until the garbage disposal stopped it from going any further.
"No. I'm not. There's nobody to blame for that. My point was that we all wish things didn't happen a certain way but we grow up and we move on!"
With that CJ turned on her heel and stormed out of the kitchen, leaving Seth to hang his head in shame. He listened to her footsteps heading up the stairs, and the eventual shutting of her bedroom door. He knew that he fucked up badly with making that comment, but he couldn't help it. There used to be a time where he told her everything, and he just wanted it to be like that again. But he was afraid that it'd never be that way again.
And his solace was down the drain with no way for him to get any alternative.
Thank you to ArtisticLullaby, Claire Moxley, guest, UntilNeverDawns, justisgirl, Sarcastic Nightmare, Sammie94, angelsdee327, Damnitambrose, ChelleLew, TajiaK, and ItReignsJustice-619 for reviewing the last chapter! I seriously appreciate it because every review brings a smile to my face and reassures me that Im really not wasting my free time.