FATHER AND SON

Set during WrestleMania 31. REALLY wanted to write something with Roman and his dad, so…here we go.

Just a brief note of the Samoan terms used, "lo'u atalii" means "my son," and "Tama" means "father."

"Yeah?" Roman sighed in annoyance as he heard someone knock on the door for the third time, even though he had warned most people backstage that he wanted to be alone. His first time performing in a WrestleMania main event match was fast approaching and Reigns had taken the unusual-for-him step in asking for a private dressing room, so he wouldn't have to deal with the overflow of people and their noise in the main locker room. He had even talked to Dean and explained that he just wanted peace, quiet and solitude to gather his thoughts.

"You haven't changed! You always did like to find a quiet place where you could be alone when you were nervous." a familiar voice replied with a slight chuckle after the person it belonged to slowly opened the door. It was a man much older than Roman with wild gray hair and a mustache to match.

"Hey, Dad." Roman greeted, getting up from his seat and walking into a warm, tight hug from his father. "You're here early!"

"Ah, decided to catch up with some of the other old guys who are here. WrestleMania's turned into quite the production since I was in it!" Sika explained, resting his forehead against Roman's for a moment. "And of course, I also wanted to pop in and see how you're doing, lo'u atalii!"

"I am nervous." Roman admitted as the pair sat down on a nearby bench. "But I, uh, talked to Lesnar earlier, so we could go over everything. Told me not to worry too much about it and just concentrate on giving the people a good show. Then, I ran into Dwayne of all people and he told me that I was looking better than he did his first time. He said that it'll just seem like another match once we get going."

"Well, he would know as he's probably been in more main events than anyone else in our family." Sika nodded before lightly nudging his son in the stomach with an elbow. "Although, someone could always break that record!"

"It's not going to be me, Dad." Roman scoffed, shaking his head. "Not with the way the fans have been treating me. Tonight might be my only shot!"

"I don't think it will be." Sika replied, "I spoke with Vince earlier and he had nothing but good things to say about you. And I've told you before that, in this business at least, any reaction is better than dead silence. It's when they go silent that you really have to start worrying."

"Yeah, I know." Roman reassured, rubbing the section of his tattoo that he had specifically done as a symbol for his daughter, JoJo. This didn't go unnoticed by Sika. "Just got to keep doing the best I can for my family, right?"

"Right." Sika nodded, putting a hand on his son's shoulder. "Fighting for the championship in the main event at WrestleMania. I STILL can't believe it! No matter what happens out there, I'm extremely proud of you, Leati! You've come so far in such a short amount of time."

"Still got a long way to go." Roman smiled, "But it does help that I've got this cranky, retired old man that texts me after every show to let me know what I could have done better in his opinion."

"Oh? Sounds like he's a bitter old man, who sometimes wishes that he wasn't retired." Sika teased, "Wonder if it's the same one who used to call your brother every week? In any case, might be best if you just ignore him, eh?"

"Nah," Roman laughed, "I don't think he'd let me. I mean, he's the type that would track me down and I think he could probably still kick my ass if he wanted to."

"Got that right." Sika smiled at his son's laughter. "So, you ready to face this Lesnar guy tonight? He looks like a tough customer."

"Yeah, I'm not in for an easy night tonight." Roman agreed as another knock was heard on the door. "Yeah?"

"Hey, Uce." Seth started to say as he walked into the room, but paused upon seeing that Roman wasn't alone. "Oh! Mr. Anoa'i! I didn't mean to interrupt…"

"Aye," Sika shook his head as he stood up and pulled a slightly surprised Seth into a hug. "How many times do I gotta tell you that Mr. Anoa'i is my father? Guess your parents did a good job of raising you to be respectful, huh? It's good to see you again, Seth."

"Same, Sika." Seth smiled, hugging the older man back.

"You know," Sika said as the two separated, "I tried that CrossFit thing you talk about down at the senior center last week. I think you might be onto something there!"

"Oh, no." Roman muttered with a slight wince.

"I'll win your son over to it eventually." Seth replied, turning to Roman. "Anyway, Uce, Vince sent me to come get you. Wants to talk to you about your match."

There was a slight undertone to his voice and something gleaming in Seth's eyes that would probably go unnoticed by most people, but Roman had spent enough time around the slightly younger man to catch it. It was a testament to just how strong the bond between Seth, Roman and Dean still was.

"All right." Roman frowned, getting up from the bench. "Sorry, Dad, but duty calls."

"I should get going anyway." Sika nodded, "Supposed to meet with Rikishi and those two clowns he calls his sons." He hugged Roman again. "Remember, lo'u atalii: no matter what happens tonight, I'm proud of you."

"Thanks, Tama." Roman smiled as he hugged his father back. "Better go see what the real big man around here wants and why he sent this jerk of all people to come get me."

"Oh, whatever, man." Seth rolled his eyes. "Again, nice to see you, Sika!"

"So, what's really up, Roll?" Roman asked after watching his dad walk away. "And don't tell me that you don't know! I see that look in your eyes."

"Well," Seth sighed heavily, wishing that he didn't have to share this bit of news with the other man. "It's about the ending of your match tonight, brother. Vince just told me that there's been a change of plans..."