Fourteen
As he had watched his boyfriend being strapped on a stretcher, Dean could still remember his heart pounding in fear and it was unlike anything he had ever experienced in his life. He had been lucky to have reached there in time.
Any minute later and Roman would have to relive that horrible night again or worse - should Adam have those kind of connections with Damien - be trafficked into sexual slavery.
Memories of how Zack died had replayed in his mind and whilst he had felt down about Zack's death - how could he have not - Roman was his heart and soul and Dean did not want to imagine what life was like without him.
He remembered telling John that he'd join him in heading down to the station while he requested for Dwayne to ride along in the ambulance.
Obviously John had been surprised and Captain Calaway was too when Dean explained that he did not - could not - do the job anymore and to find a better man for it despite both men's protest that he was the best.
He shook his head and passed his badge to Captain Calaway who had refused to look at him or even accept it. So he placed it and his gun on the table. John had followed after him and demanded he took both items back but Dean only replied that he would be back the following day to clear his desk.
And that was that.
Roman had been staring at him, without saying a word, as he explained what had happened.
"I haven't decided what I want to do yet," he admitted. "I'll have to figure something out. Maybe join my father in his business."
"But that's not you," Roman finally said. "That's not you so why be something you're not? Dean, I'm alright now. You need to be out there trying to get evidence to nail Damien instead of sitting here and hiding."
Hiding? "Let's make one thing clear, Roman. I am not hiding."
"Yes, you are. I would honestly feel much safer if you were out there trying to do something instead of being next to me."
Roman looked a bit annoyed and Dean could not phantom why.
"As would I," a familiar voice said.
Both men found Captain Calaway standing at the door in his leather jacket and jeans. He nodded at Roman as he closed the door. "So you're Roman."
Roman smiled a little. "I am."
"He hasn't stopped smiling since he met you. He walks around with a bounce too. I used to think Dean Ambrose didn't have a weakness but I was wrong because clearly his kryptonite is you."
"I want him out there just as much as you do."
"Good." Captain Calaway frowned a little at Dean then. "Ambrose, take back this badge and gun and do your job."
Dean stared at Roman. "How could you, Roman?"
"I'm sorry, Dean but you know where I stand on this," Roman persisted. "Please try and understand. Damien likes you a lot and I am confident it's only a matter of time before you can nail him."
"Damn it, Roman!"
"I was a rape victim, Dean. I wished that there were cops like you out there to stop evil men like Adam and Damien from doing these disgusting things. Please. You have to continue this assignment. He already likes you and that's half the battle won."
They were a day shy of being together for two weeks. He took his badge and gun from Captain Calaway without a word to him and strode out of the room without a glance at Roman.
"Dean!"
"Just give him time."
Roman turned his attention to Captain Calaway who was looking at him with concern. "He seemed really upset," the chef remarked.
"He won't be when he realises we're right. Dean may be hot-headed, headstrong but he's not that oblivious. I think all this stems out of fear… he had seen his late boyfriend die in front of him. He probably wants to be by your side all the time to protect you." The Captain sighed. "But thank you. You have my gratitude."
"I know he's capable of doing great things."
"Dean's the best. And that's not an exaggeration. He was up for the position of sergeant but he chose to leave SWAT and be a detective. He couldn't bear to be on that team. Zack and him had big plans."
"You knew him?"
"I'm Zack's uncle." He sighed sadly. "That's why I'm quite soft towards Dean."
"I… I'm sorry about your nephew."
"It's alright. I'm glad Dean has you."
"For now." If he was being honest, he was half expecting Dean to ask him to pack his things and leave for making him do something against his will.
"Oh he'll get over it. Trust me; he will. Maybe not so soon but eventually."
Dean sipped his ice cold Miller Lite at Joe's and stared at the television.
The bartender, Ron Simmons, gave him a concerned look. "Something on your mind, Dean?"
"Huh," he grunted. He had been coming to Joe's for as long as he could remember since he was officially eighteen. Ron knew him very well. He knew Zack too. "I… uh… I met someone. And I love him."
"No way!" Ron laughed. "Congratulations."
"I can just picture Zack laughing because I've never felt that way about anyone but it's true. But I'm stuck in a rut now. I have to go undercover and date someone which means I can't be by his side to protect him the way I should have protected Zack."
He wiped the tears that were starting to form. I'm sorry, Zack. I'm so sorry. "He was almost attacked earlier today and I was barely on time. I threw in my badge but he made me take it back. I don't need this, Ron. Becoming a cop was a big mistake."
"He would have been sad to hear you say that."
Dean turned around at the sound of the voice. Glenn Jacobs, Zack's father, stood behind him with a faint smile. "How are you, Dean? You look… polished."
He rolled his eyes. "Is that your way of telling me you hate my look?"
"Zack hates scruffy." Glenn nodded at Ron. "Hi Ron. I'll have a Jack and a Coke."
Ron smiled and went about to prepare the order.
"Roman doesn't seemed to mind," Dean said.
Glenn gave him a knowing look. "Aaah that's his name. You don't look happy though."
"I'm angry with him."
"Because he made you take back your badge? I'd say he's being caring, knowing how much being an officer means to you. I know this whole thing is new to you but as long as he's standing there by your side, know that you can make it through anything. Because that's what love does, Dean. It gives you strength. You can't be there all the time with him but have faith that he'll be okay. No matter how scary it is, you have to keep having faith. Otherwise, that'll stop you from living your life and that's the real tragedy. Zack knew how much you loved the job and he knew what the risks were. Just as I'm sure your boyfriend does too."
He listened quietly while letting it all sink in.
"Besides, the Dean Ambrose I know never shies away from a challenge. Let this not be the one that makes you do so."
Roman managed to get himself discharged but not without signing an indemnity form first. He wanted - needed - to see Dean. The nurses tried to stop him but he wouldn't be deterred.
The Captain drove him back to the hotel and wished him good luck. When he entered the room, he found Dean there putting on a grey t-shirt. He touched his shoulder. "Dean."
Dean flinched at the contact of Roman's hand. That hurt Roman and he took a step back. "Look, Dean. I… I know you're angry at me but honestly it's the right thing to do."
He could see Dean's hands being clenched and he was terrified then. This was Dean. Dean had told him several times that he only wanted to love and protect him. "I'll… I'll just take my things and leave," he said quietly.
He could not believe that they were a day away from being together for two weeks and now they were… what? Breaking up?
"I love you, Roman." The words stopped him as he was about to head for his empty bag. He turned around and found Dean looking at him with tears in his eyes. "I know that I've been a bit too headstrong but I was scared. When I had lost Zack, I spent months in therapy just trying to get over it. But with you, it's different. You're my heart and soul, Roman. I can't bear to lose you."
"But you won't," Roman replied. "You're the love of my life, Dean. I'm not going anywhere."
He allowed Dean to pull him into his arms and then their lips met in a heart stopping kiss. "Don't you dare go anywhere. I wanna see your face at the end of the day, not his."
He chuckled, his heart warmed. "Yes, Sir."
Dean had to feigned a happy face when he saw Damien walked into the summit room. The crime boss had sent him a voice message - in the middle of his make out with Roman - to meet him in the lobby. "Hey," he said. "I know I was going to bring you somewhere but then this meeting came up and then it just snowballed from there. Let me make it up to you."
"What did you have in mind?" Dean asked, tilting his head.
"Dinner in my room. Maybe a little dessert. What do you say?"
"Sounds good."
Damien's jaw dropped. "Really?"
"Yes. Really."
"Oh okay." He was giddy with excitement. "Wanna come to my room?"
"Sure."
Damien stayed two floors above Dean with the same room layout as his. When the door closed behind him, the criminal started to plant kisses on the side of his neck.
"Woah. What happened to dinner?" Dean said.
"Well, I thought we can start with dessert first," Damien proposed as he claimed Dean's lips again. "I want you, Jon."
Dean wrapped his arms around him and returned his kisses passionately.
Okay maybe I'll imagine it's Seth, a voice within him coaxed him as Damien removed his dress shirt before tugging on Dean's t-shirt.
Dean tossed his t-shirt aside and pushed Damien on the medium sized sofa bed. The auburn haired cop trailed hot kisses on the criminal's neck before kissing his chest pecs.
"Gosh Jon…" Damien groaned as he rested his hands on Dean's shoulders. "I want you so bad."
"Patience," Dean teased.
"I don't have any."
"You'll have to learn how to." Dean gave him a hard kiss and Damien's arms were now hooked around his neck. "Hard for me already?"
"Yes…"
"Hmmm…" Dean unbuckled his pants and then Damien's cellular phone rang. He cursed and took it out from his right pocket. Dean saw the name "B" on it. B? Who the hell was B? Another puzzle to figure out.
"Excuse me, Jon," he apologised before he stood up. I"ll have to take this."
"Sure. Take your time."
He watched Damien leave the room and talk to his friend on the balcony. He seemed upset and was pacing back and forth. Dean studied his movements. He was losing control on that precious self restraint emotions of his.
He quickly sat down before Damien ended the call and entered the room. "Sorry about that."
"Problems?"
"Yeah. Adam's in jail." He shook his head. "He tried to… it's stupid, really."
"He tried to what?"
"You know that guy you like to stare at?"
Dean smirked. "You?"
Damien laughed. "What? No. I mean the pastry chef. Adam tried to get frisky with him. And now he's in jail."
"Oh."
"Yeah but fuck him. He ruined our night."
"That's okay. There's always another day. How about tomorrow?"
His face brightened. "That sounds perfect."
When Dean reached his suite, Roman was sound asleep. That was okay, he thought. Maybe now he could figure out who the hell B was. He had just removed his jeans when he saw Roman stirring about restlessly, as if he was fighting off someone.
He walked towards his boyfriend and caressed his face gently. "Roman," he said softly. "It's okay."
Roman turned away and Dean lied down beside him, hugging him from the back. He struggled then and Dean loosened his grip. Suddenly he was up and moving away in fear to the other side of the bed.
"Dean!" he said.
"Yeah, it's me," he said, pulling Roman close to him. "Relax, Roman."
"I had a nightmare about Adam. I dreamt that he shipped me off to a brothel."
"No one's taking you anywhere. Stop worrying your pretty head about it." He kissed Roman and gripped his hands. "You'll be okay."
"How did it go with Damien?"
"It went okay. I'll spare you the details. There was someone named B who called him."
"B?"
"Yeah. I'm going to have to ask Captain to run a scan through on anyone named B with previous charges of sexual crimes."
"And in the meantime?"
Dean smiled at him. "In the meantime, I wanna make love to my boyfriend. Okay?"
"Okay. Does your boyfriend get to top?" Roman asked, hopeful.
"You're damn right he does."
Roman loved reading but he also loved to jog occasionally in the mornings. When he worked for his brother, he barely had the time to do anything. Now he had the luxury of it so he wanted to make full use of the opportunity.
He left a sleeping Dean in his suite, kissing him on his cheek before he took the elevator down and greeted the receptionist on his way out.
It was dark outside but Roman knew there was a park nearby so he decided to make to head towards there. The jogging tracks were dimly lit but it would be a fast jog, maybe twenty minutes top. He decided to do some warm ups first and stretched his arms and legs.
He heard some footsteps. Maybe there were other joggers like him, he thought as he stretched his calf.
"Roman Reigns."
He froze when he heard his name being called.
In front of him was a man with long brown hair and a menacing smile. He was smiling at him with a twisted look. The man looked as big as Frank. There was glimpse of something green on his hand but before he could process it, the man took a few steps closer. He towered over the Samoan chef easily. "You're the guy who put my buddy, Adam in jail."
His eyes widened and when he tried to run, he bumped into another man. "Going somewhere?" the man cackled. He felt someone hit him on the back of his head and started to drag him to a corner.
"No fair, Braun," the blonde hair man said. "You always get to have fun first."
"Can you blame me? He's my type," the man called Braun replied.
He felt his pants being pulled down. "Stop!" Roman pleaded. He tried to kick his way out but Braun's weight crushed him.
The blond smirked helping to pull down Roman's boxers. "What are you planning to do with him?"
"Auction him? I hope he fucks as good as he looks." He touched his length and as much as Roman wanted to move, he couldn't. Braun was heavy and probably weighed over four hundred pounds. "Be a good man and shut up!"
The blond clamped his hand over Roman's mouth hard. The Samoan bit on his hand hard. "Ouch! You bit me you motherfucker!" He punched Roman on his face causing him to cry out in pain.
He felt his muscle aching and burning.
"Jeez would you just fuck him already?" the blond snapped to Braun who was kissing Roman on his right pec.
"I'd like to fuck you instead!"
Roman's eyes flew to Dean who yanked the blond and threw him on the ground. Braun stood up and yelled as he charged for Dean who instinctively moved out of the way, causing the blond who was waking up to fly.
When Braun turned around, Dean kicked him in between his legs and fell to the floor on his knees just before he got two roundhouse kicks to his face. He collapsed in a heap.
He closed his eyes. "It's okay," his boyfriend murmured. "I'm here."
"How… how…"
Dean pulled up his boxers and pants for him quietly. "Come on," he said as he put his arms around him. Roman stood up gingerly and they walked back to the hotel by the back entrance. His boyfriend's eyes seemed to be everywhere, scanning the environment.
When they got back to the suite, Roman started to breakdown. "Hey!" Dean said as he held him. "It's okay."
"But what- how-"
"I installed an app to track your movements on your phone. I'm surprised you actually missed it." He sighed. "I'm sorry, Roman but I was worried. I just wanted to know where you were in case I wasn't there by your side."
He was actually glad that the scruffy cop did. But still, he couldn't help but feel dirty and unworthy to be near Dean.
Dean kissed him on his lips gently and brought him to the bathroom.
"De-"
His boyfriend cut him off and continued to kiss him. Roman stiffened but still Dean clung on and without him realising it, his pants were to his ankles. "No, Dean," he said, pushing the auburn haired man away. "I'm sorry but I can't."
"I was only going to shower you," he explained.
"I know… just not now, okay?"
His boyfriend stared at him for a bit. "Okay."
When the door closed behind him, Roman turned on the rainforest shower and let it fall down on him. Then it hit him and he sank to the floor, sitting. He hugged his arms around his legs and stared out into space, let his mind drift back to what had happened.
A/N As mentioned, the next few chapters will be intense. Thank you for the favorites/follows/reviews. :-)