Stab the body and it heals, but injure the heart and the wound lasts a lifetime- Mineko Iwasaki
September 20, 2014 - Davenport Iowa 8:00am
Seth groaned as the all too familiar sound of his alarm clock, which he had done battle with earlier and set for a later time, once again pulled him from his fitful slumber. He really didn't want to get up but he stretched reluctantly, his body protesting the movement. On instinct, his hand reached beside, to the spot that his prized pooch Kevin usually resided. It was empty, the spot cool to the touch. The pup had probably gotten thirsty or was sick of waiting for his master to get his lazy ass out of bed.
His eyes struggled to adjust to the sunlight that streamed into his bedroom before they gave up the fight and closed again. This was one of those rare days that he'd rather just stay in bed and do nothing. Ignore everything going on around him and just lose himself in countless hours of Madden and music. Revel in the mundane activities of a normal, every day life and not think about the screwed up reality of his existence.
It had been hard falling back into his old routine after three weeks away from it. He'd been back home for days now and he still hadn't managed to fall back into schedule. Guess his body had enjoyed it's brief respite a little too much. Didn't want to obey his orders and go about business as usual. Not that his mind was too eager to fall back into it's previous track either.
That was odd to say the least. He should be dying to go to cross fit. Yearning to feel the burn of an intense session and the satisfaction that came along with completing it. Thinking about what gear he's going to bring on the road. Getting ready to pack his bags and download his boarding pass, looking forward to resuming the future he worked so hard to obtain.
But he didn't feel any of that.
Uncertainty is the only way he can describe what's going on with him.
Even though his suspension was officially up as of today, he wasn't scheduled to return until the RAW after Night of Champions. Guess they figured that they'd know what to do with him by then. If Dean was medically cleared, which was probably a long shot, then they'd probably resume their feud. If not then they'd set up a new feud for him, most likely with Roman. Neither of those options did much to peak his excitement or enthrall him.
Roman was pissed over the situation that transpired and rightfully so but he also thought there was more than meets the eyes with his attempt to help Dean recover which there wasn't. That meant if they were forced into a feud right now, it wouldn't be just strictly business. It would definitely be ugly and personal. The big brother of the Shield would be looking to exact a little retribution for what he had done to Dean. His punches would be harder, his moves stiffer and his comments more cutting.
What Seth had done had been stupid, reckless and never should have happened. There was no denying or arguing that fact. It could have cost Dean his mobility or his life. There was no problem with the Samoan man waiting to exact some punishment for those horrendous actions. But he didn't deserve to be punished for trying the only thing he could do to try to make up for it.
Seth really didn't want to resume his feud with Dean either though. The last three weeks had reminded him of what he was missing. That unwavering trust. The strong bonds of brotherhood. A sense of purpose and a rightness that he didn't feel when he was around the other members of the authority.
Of course all of that was lost now that Dean had regained his memory.
For the dirty blonde, them stepping in the ring together again would be his dream come true. A chance to deliver some much deserved justice for the things that had been said and done to him. He wouldn't let up until he inflicted as much pain and suffering on Seth as he could possibly could. Wouldn't stop until he was satisfied that the architect had learned his lesson and paid for sins. That was fine because if anyone deserved a chance to deliver payback, it was Dean.
But for Seth, he didn't want to face his former brother anymore. Didn't want to see that hurt and hatred that those blue eyes could never hide. Dreaded seeing that look of contempt and disappointment in the curve of the eccentric man's mouth. Hated that after everything they had been through that Dean would think that there was something more sinister to his attempt at atonement than there was. That he would be back to being nothing more than someone that the self-professed lunatic would want to destroy.
Before the curb stomp through the cinderblocks, it had bothered him but it was nothing that he couldn't ignore. It had gotten easier every time he stood across the ring from his former brother. The key was to pretend that it didn't matter. Act like they were never anything more than business partners, had never been friends or brothers. Forget that they spent years hanging out and talking about everything they hoped to accomplish in this industry.
Now, he wasn't so sure that he could stand in the ring across from Dean and play the part of the sellout. Act like being surrounded by the authority was what he wanted and the best thing that had ever happened to him. Gloat about the things he had done in the name of getting to the top. Say that this was his dream come true and the Shield had been nothing but a stepping stone. Pretend it wasn't ripping his soul from his body every time he had to tell Dean that he was nothing but a lunatic.
He sighed, pushing his head further into the pillows.
The ping of his phone forced a groan from him but he rolled over and grabbed it from his nightstand. A text message from Triple H awaited him, which elicited another groan from his mouth. He really didn't feel like having to play corporate golden boy right now or tell the older man whatever he wanted to hear. But he had a job to consider and since that was all he had left, there really was no choice. Might as well see what the soulless bastard had to say and just do whatever he had to in order to get rid of him quickly.
"Sorry man, know you were probably looking forward to having one more day to relax but it looks like we're going to need you tomorrow at the show after all. Hasn't been announced yet but we just got word that Reigns is undergoing emergency surgery."
What the hell? He didn't have time to dwell on that right this second because there was another message under it.
"No need to book a flight. We'll send the jet."
He re-read those messages several times, feeling a prickle of unease along his spine. There was no way that he couldn't respond. So he typed out a deliberately casual, "No problem, I'll be ready. What happened to Reigns?"
It felt like he had been waiting forever before his phone finally pinged.
"Incarcerated Hernia."
Relief swept through Seth at that. While it sucked for Roman to be injured, it was better than the alternatives that had run through his mind. He'd been worried that the authority had enough of the big dog and put some of their much discussed plans into action. Like Randy had gotten a little too vicious in a match or attacked him after one. Triple H decided to use his sledgehammer. Kane repeated the cinderblock scenario with Roman.
His teeth raked pensively over his lower lip. He wondered if anyone had told Dean about what was going on with Roman. That was something he definitely needed to know. It wouldn't be good if he didn't find out until after it happened. It was probably a moot point to worry about, most likely one of the twins probably called him already.
But what if they didn't? What if they were so distracted with calling the rest of their family that they forgot to ring the eccentric man? Or that they assumed that he'd already been told? Figured that Roman had managed to tell him before being wheeled into the operating room? What if they left a voicemail or sent a text and Dean, being Dean, didn't bother to check his phone until tomorrow?
Why risk it?
It wouldn't be right for Dean to find out through a company email or get a text from a random co-worker. He grabbed his phone and went into his contacts. Locating the dirty blonde's number, he took a deep breath and pushed the phone icon. Instead of being greeted by a ring and that all too familiar gravel voice, he received a strange computerized one instead.
"The number that you have reached is no longer in service."
Disconnecting the call, he frowned down at the device. That was weird. Yeah, Dean had changed his number after the shield split but he'd gotten the number when he had been staying there. He vaguely remembered putting the current number in the phone one morning after he claimed that his new phone hadn't transferred the numbers over. Maybe he forgot to push save or typed it in wrong?
Could the phone be acting up? Wouldn't be the first time and probably not the last either. It was frustrating as hell that even after all these years that cell phones still experienced issues. You'd think they'd have them all ironed out by now. But then again, they wouldn't have an excuse to jack up prices when they released the latest model phone that promised it was superior to the last.
He decided to try again, expecting to hear it ring this time.
"The number that you have reached is no longer in service."
A frustrated groan tumbled from his mouth as he remembered Roman saying that Dean had broken his phone when he trashed his apartment. The eccentric man probably didn't get a new phone yet or if he did, decided to get a new number to go along with it. Made things slightly more difficult for him to reach out and break the news. Or subtly try to check up on him like he had been planning to do.
Maybe there was a way he could check up without having go through the former United States Champion?
He pulled up his thread with Triple H, "So I guess that means Reigns is out of our hair for a while. Any word on Ambrose?"
His heart was hammering in his chest as he waited for a response. Nerves were stretched so tightly that when the phone pinged a couple of minutes later, he almost dropped the damn thing. It took some quick reflexes on his part to keep his phone from having a tragic one on one match with the floor. He let out a deep breath and went back into the thread, hoping that there'd be some good news.
"Lunatic's still M.I.A, don't think we'll ever see him again."
Damn it, that wasn't what he wanted to hear.
Because if Dean had been cleared by the Neurologist then he would have contacted the company two minutes after it happened.
The eccentric man would have demanded to be booked as soon as possible. No way in hell would he have sat back and bided his time. Wrestling was his passion, was his life. If the office tried to hold off or push back his return, he'd have fought them tooth and nail or forced their hand by showing up and refusing to leave. That was just the way that Dean was and always would be.
With a heavy sigh, he finally pulled himself out of bed now that he was resigned to it being another crappy day. Poor Kevin was probably starving by now. He hadn't intended to make the poor pooch wait so long enough. To make up for it, he'd cook his companion his own breakfast of eggs.
Nashville Tennessee - 8:00am
Dean paced the length of the waiting room once again, as he had been doing since his brother had been rushed through the emergency surgery doors an hour ago. His hand slapped at his thighs in agitation with every pass. This was not how he pictured this situation going when he showed up to surprise Roman on Friday. It was supposed to be just a fun hang out session with his brother to help him decompress before his big match with the viper on Sunday. A way for the big dog to let go of some of the tension that he'd been holding onto for too long.
Instead it ended up with him waking up to a situation that he realized wasn't good and breaking every traffic law ever written to get Roman to the hospital before whatever the hell that giant lump on his stomach was exploded. Now, here he was two hours later, still in the damn waiting room and no sign of a damn doctor to tell him what was going on. Being patient was not a virtue he possessed. Part of him just wanted to go up to the operating room and force them to answer his question. But he couldn't because they'd kick him out of the hospital. That was why he kept pacing because he could not handle this if he was forced to be idle.
He pivoted to resume his path but it was unceremoniously blocked.
Jimmy grabbed him by the shoulders and sighed heavily, "Uce, you got to stop the pacing before you wear a path through the tile or it catches on fire. Don't want them to add the damage to Rome's bill."
Blue eyes rolled and he shook free of the grasp, opting to flop down in a chair with a loud, disgruntled huff. From the nervous looks they were casting him, whatever expression on his face wasn't a good one. His lips separated in a teeth baring grin that screamed nothing but malice.
"See what you did?" Jey clucked his tongue at his twin. "Now little uce is over there plotting to kill your ass."
"He ain't plotting to kill me…"
"Fork through the carotid artery then twist." Dean intone flatly, arms crossed over his chest and his leg jiggling rapidly. "Only takes about four minutes."
Jimmy blinked, face paling. He shook his head and swallowed thickly, obviously a little disconcerted by what he just heard. "Well…damn."
"Told ya!" Jey somehow managed to look both proud of himself for being right and uneasy from what he'd just heard.
"You're the one who told me to get him to stop pacing!" The elder twin snapped. "I had no problem leaving him alone."
"You listened to me."
Dean rolled his eyes again, tuning out their bickering. He liked the twins. Really, he did. They were like the cousins he never had. But in that moment, they were getting on his last frayed nerve. It was almost to the point that he could murder them both, dispose of the bodies in the morgue and not give a fuck.
He had enough time to accomplish it since Roman's parents were still en-route from Florida.
An unfamiliar ringing from his pocket distracted his thought process. His expression clouded with confusion because it wasn't his phone that it was coming from. The phone he currently owned was back in the hotel room, forgotten in his haste to get the older man to the hospital. It had to be Roman's. A nurse had given him the few personal belongings that Roman had on him and he'd shoved the small bag in the pocket of his hoodie.
Pulling the bag out, he opened it and looked curiously at the phone. Dolph Ziggler's name was showing on the display and he frowned at that because it wasn't something that just happened. Begged the question of what could the show-off want with Roman? There was only one way to find out. He took the phone out and pushed the green button, "Yeah?"
"Uh, Roman?"
No one beside the office knew what was going on and he sure as hell wasn't going to tell Dolph of all people the truth. He shifted in the seat, tapping his fingers against the arm of the uncomfortable chair. "He's busy right now."
There was silence for a second before the peroxide blonde spoke again, his voice heavy with surprise. "Dean?"
"Yup."
"Hey man, how you doing?" The older man sounded genuinely interested in his answer to that query.
He grimaced at that because his first instinct was to snap something less than pleasant at the person on the other end of the call but he figured he'd play this out, see what the other man was after. "Still kicking, obviously."
There was a bemused chuckle, "Glad to hear it man. A lot of people were worried after what happened."
Enough of that phony sentiment. Time to get to the important shit. "What did you need Ro for?"
"I've been keeping him up to date on the Rollins situation when I hear something. My sources called and told me that they've bumped his return up from Raw to the PPV tomorrow instead. Just wanted to give him the heads up because that can't mean anything good for him. Probably going to have him interfere in his match with Randy."
A growl escaped his mouth before he could bite it back, startling both Ziggler and the twins, who were once again looking at him like he was crazy. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. It didn't make him feel any calmer but he figured that he could sound it, especially since he knew for a fact that there wasn't going to be a match for that son of a bitch to interfere in anymore. "That so?"
"Don't know for sure but I figure that's the most obvious tactic they'd take."
"Thanks for the head's up." His voice sounded like he'd been gargling broken glass.
"No problem man." Dolph sounded almost sincere. "I hear anything else, I'll call back."
"Yup." He hung up before the show-off could say anything else, his blood boiling and his hands tightening in rage.
Fingers wrapped around his wrist, "Drop it man, phones ain't supposed to make those sounds."
Dean looked up at Jimmy then down at his clenched fist. Something inside it was making a cracking noise. He released his grip and groaned as he seen the now spider webbed screen staring back at him. Guess he owed Ro a new phone. "Fuck."
"See, I warned you that something wasn't right while he was talking." Jey tsk'd at his older brother. "You didn't want to listen to me and waited until it was too late."
Before Jimmy could respond, Dean leaned forward so he could see the other man and pinned the motor-mouth with a murderous glare. "You're getting a fork to the jugular if you don't pipe down."
"Damn man!" The younger man shook his head. "Keep that shit up and I'm gonna tell uce that you ain't allowed near silverware anymore."
"Oh please," A lazy wave of dismissal followed that. "Like I haven't been carrying my own for years."
Jimmy stepped away from him, giving him a worried side-eye and holding his hands up in surrender. "How do you get it through…no, you know what? I don't want to know."
"Didn't think so." He jumped to his feet and resumed the pacing that he'd been so rudely interrupted from earlier.
His mind shifted from worrying about Roman to thinking about the sellout he used to call his brother. Sure, the bastard had sounded sincere and contrite about the things he had done when he had taken advantage of his memory loss but this latest move proved that it was nothing but bullshit. That the piece of scum had been doing his best to play him so that the weasel could obtain whatever endgame that the authority had in mind. He had almost believed it because he missed his little brother. Those few weeks they spent together had only made it hurt more once he remembered the truth, torn open those three month old scabs and made them raw once again.
There was no way he was going to let the bastard get away with this.
Not this time.
Dean was going to make sure that whatever Seth and the Authority had planned for Night of Champions didn't come to fruition.