Author Note: I'd like to thank JemmaZoey, maryb1439, and tobypll for being followers to this story. I'd also like to thank DeeMarie426, Leasha Orton, THE Kid Hardy, and LindaPipeBomb for giving me awesome reviews. I hope you enjoy this new chapter. The lyrics at the end of the chapter are not mine. They belong to the band Dyonisis.

"When you've lost your mind

Feel like no ones on your side

And you're lost in this lonely world

Living like it's over now

When you lost all hope just know

When you're lost you can always be found"

'Found' by: The Letter Black

Chapter 18: New Strength

Rydia awoke with a nagging pain in her neck and realized that she was still laying on Roman's lap. She had hoped everything that happened the previous night was just a horrible dream that she'd just wake up from; but seeing herself in the same place she fell asleep she knew that it was all a reality.

"Morning..." Roman greeted softly.

"Thank you..." She replied sitting up turning her head to relieve some of the pain in her neck.

She opened the car door and stepped out into the fresh spring air. It was mostly summer like weather in Texas and it made her feel a little more at ease knowing that she was is familiar territory. Roman was next to her in a matter of seconds. His long hair blew all around in the warm breeze. A few pieces waved under her nose, tickling her enough to make her smile a little.

"I probably should get back. Mia is going to give me an earful when I get home."

"She called me last night and I told her where you were. Don't worry everything is fine."

Rydia turned to looked at him directly. She couldn't believe that he was that devoted to her well being. Her heart started to pound inside her chest to a point of pain. He took her hand into his and brushed his thumb across the back of her fingers. "You...you really do care about me don't you?" She asked hesitantly.

"I told you that I did."

"I'm sorry..."

Roman held a finger to her lips to silence her apology. He didn't want to hear anymore of her regrets. Her lips were soft under his touch and he was starting to crave the feeling of them on his own. She reached up and rested her hand on his wrist. "Stop apologizing for everything. There is one thing I want you to understand and that's the fact I'm not going anywhere, no matter how much you push me away." He stated and moved his finger from her lips, turning to cup the back of her head.

"Roman..."

His lips crashed onto hers cuting the words off from her mouth. The same feeling of electricity engulfed her entire body. The second he felt her lips respond to his kiss, he knew that the feelings he held for her were so deep that he had no words to describe them. Her tongue lightly swiped against his barely parted mouth; but it didn't take more than a second for him to open up, allowing her access to his own tongue.

Shifting her body a little, Rydia found herself up against the door of his SUV. Her hands roamed up his chest, feeling every outline of the muscles obtained on his body. There was no denying that there was pent up frustration on his part; but judging from the way she was responding to his kisses, there was frustration in her as well.

"You might want to keep your hands to yourself." An all too familiar voice interrupted.

Roman broke the kiss and turned to see Bray Wyatt standing there with narrowed eyes and arms crossed over his chest. Rydia was still trying to take back control over her emotions and tried to suppress the tingling sensation throughout her core. "Why don't you crawl back into the hole you came out of. I'm in no mood to deal with you today." Roman snapped stepping in front of Rydia in a protective stance.

"Relax, I'm not here to fight you. I actually came here to warn her." He replied taking a step closer to the couple.

"Warn me about what?" Rydia asked cautiously.

"I've tried to keep your budding romance with the dog from Nick; but it would seem he knows now and his wrath is unfathomable. I would know. You also need to know that I had nothing to do with your father's death."

Rydia took his words into consideration; but she in no way believed he was sincere about only being there to warn her about Nick's growing wrath. Her anger about his insult to Roman was provoking her temper in the worst way. "First off, Roman is not a dog. Second, I could care less about your problems with him; and third, I don't believe you for a second that your only reason for being here was to warn me." Rydia snapped holding back greatly so as not to strike him.

"That's why you are perfect for me. You know me so well; but unfortunately you are wrong this time."

"You need to leave right now!" Roman warned clenching his hands at his side.

She placed a calming hand on his chest and gently pushed him back. Her sorrow filled eyes hit him like a ton of bricks. He relaxed and wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him. "Please...just leave us alone. I've been through enough in the last three months." She pleaded with the crazed man.

"Nick won't ever stop..." Bray said before walking away with his head held low.

He had said all he could to convince her that he was telling the truth. Bray knew that he had no intention of physically harming her; but the look in her eyes when she spoke to him suggested that she believed otherwise.

Chandler Household

Mia sat on the steps of the front steps waiting for Rydia to return. Listening to the birds chirping and singing made her really think about her life. In just one day, she had lost her father. He had been a pillar of strength for her lean on when she lost hope of succeeding in the WWE. There were so many questions she wanted answers to. Among them was whether or not she had it in her to continue working.

"Mia, staring out into the yard for hours isn't going make her come home any faster." Her mother stated sitting down next to her.

"I know. How are you so calm right now? It hasn't even been a day since he died." Mia asked wiping stray tears from her eyes.

"I have to stay strong for you girls. You need me more than ever now. I can't be breaking down every second. He would yell at me if I did."

Mia leaned her head on her mother's comforting shoulder. Karen leaned over and kissed her daughter's forehead. They saw a silver sports car pull into the driveway and they stiffened, wondering if it was the police with official word of Paul's death. Mia's breath of air was caught in her throat when she saw Dean emerge from the vehicle.

Karen smiled on the inside. She was happy to know that her daughter had a man that was willing to be with her during a hard time in her life. Dean approached with a large bouquet of flowers. The walk to her house seemed like an eternity. He didn't know what kind of reception he'd receive when he got to the door.

"Dean...how did you find where I was?" Mia asked.

"You said you were going home, so I looked it up." He replied honestly.

"I'll leave you guys to talk." Karen said standing up.

"Wait! These are for you..."

Dean handed her the flowers. She took them with a smile. "Thank you. You are welcome to stay here tonight. The funeral is tomorrow." She announced and walked back inside the house, the screen door closing behind her.

He sat down next to Mia and placed his hand on top of her leg. She turned her hand and twined her fingers with his. She needed his comforting presence in every way possible. He felt the small box in his pocket dig into his thigh the second he sat down, reminding him that he still hadn't given her the present he had bought for her birthday.

"Thank you for coming. I needed you." She admitted resting her head on his shoulder.

"Why didn't you call or text me to come sooner? I would have came last night." He asked kissing her forehead.

"I thought I could deal with this alone; but I can't..."

Hearing her cry was the most heartbreaking thing he'd ever endured in his twenty-eight years. He held her, wishing there was something he could do to ease her pain; but the only thing he could do was be there for her during this dark time. "I know this isn't really a good time; but I never got a chance to give this to you." Dean said letting her rise from his shoulder.

"Give me what?" She asked wiping her face free of the tears.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small black box. Her eyes widened a little upon seeing the item. She was hoping that he wasn't planing to ask her to marry him or something along those lines. It was a little too soon for that kind of commitment, even if she did think she loved him. Dean handed her the small box and was replied by a confused look. "Happy Birthday, princess." He whispered and kissed her lips.

Mia opened the box with a creak and inside lay a the most beautiful ring she had ever laid eyes on. White gold band, with two small diamond surrounding a heart-shaped aquamarine in the center. She couldn't form any words to describe how she felt about it. It completely caught her off guard. "It's not an engagement ring, Mia. Think of it as a promise." He assessed.

"A promise? You've made enough promises to me don't you think?"

"This is just a continuation of the last promise I made to you. I told you that I wasn't going anywhere and that ring symbolizes that. I love you and you need to know that."

The three words every woman wants to hear from a man just made her freeze up completely. He took the ring out of the box and gently placed it on her finger. She stared at it a moment, loving the way it sparkled in the sunlight. "It's beautiful...you really shouldn't have done this. I know it was pricy." She stated.

"Mia, look at me."

She lifted her head up to look him in the eyes. There was nothing but sincerity in his own blue orbs. Her feelings for him were still growing on a level that confused her. She never once had felt this way about anyone. Not even Randy. He cupped her cheek and brushed the skin with his thumb. "I love you. Nothing is too pricy for you." He said again.

"I love you to; but I'm afraid."

"There is no need to be afraid of those feelings."

"You're right..."

Hotel, San Antonio

Skye continued to pack her belongings into her bag, trying to forget the events of the last two months. She was beginning to regret coming back in the first place. Seth had no interest in letting her make amends for the mistake she had made over a year ago. She really couldn't blame him for feeling that way. Her decision to leave to pursue a career in music was a last minute thing. She gave him no warning at all.

After seeing Rydia's father collapse in the club, she felt like leaving one again; but she couldn't just leave her best friend in this time of need. Tears rolled down her cheeks uncontrollably as she zipped up the bag. She extending the handle and began to pull it behind her. When she walked out into the hall, Seth was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest. It looked as though he was waiting for her.

"What are you doing here? I thought you'd be with the sisters by now." Skye stated closing the door behind her.

"I thought you'd want to go to."

"I'm heading there now."

Skye continued onward without saying another word to him. He knew that she was upset with everything that was going on around them. He also knew that gig was meant to send a message to him and he never responded to it. She never looked back once the whole time they walked towards the lobby.

"Seth!" Stephanie's voice echoed.

He stopped and turned in her direction. She approached them and smiled at Skye, giving her a loving hug. Stephanie held a small packet of papers in her hand and Seth guessed it was scripts for everyone for the next couple of weeks. "Send my condolences to Mia and Rydia."

"I will do that. It will be appreciated." He replied.

"These are the scripts for all of you for the next couple weeks. I haven't seen the others so I'll just give them all to you. I'm sure they are looking forward to your return."

"Thanks."

Stephanie reached out and touched Seth's shoulder sympatheticly. He turned to look at Skye. There was swirling emotions deep within her irises. He wished he knew what the best answer was. Rydia was hurt a lot by his actions two months in the making. At first, he felt sibling-like feelings for her; but he more he got to know her, he started to think it was more than that.

"Let's go. They need us." Skye said touching his arm softly.

Seth followed her out into the parking garage. He knew that Dean took the vehicle they shared on the trip there. Skye pretty much guessed that was the case and offered him a ride. He got into the passenger seat and opened the envelope. Everything was pretty generic for the most part, except for one thing. Rydia would part of it and would be involved with a member of the group onscreen. His eyes scanned further down and widened upon seeing the name of the one who would be involved with her. "It's me..." He whispered just as Skye got inside the car.

"It's you what?" She asked curiously.

"Rydia and I will be involved onscreen soon."

There was a moment of silence between them. Skye had a feeling that Seth was secretly happy about the onscreen romance; but he seemed so upset and she wondered why. "Are you okay?" She asked hoping that he'd give her a straight answer for once.

"If I go through with this, I'll hurt more than one person. It'll cause tension between all of us and we won't be able to protect Rydia from Nick."

"What about you and what you want?"

"I'm confused. My feelings for her are on the border between sibling and attraction; but you coming back has made be think about the past."

She wanted him to think about the past and what they had together. She wanted him to remember exactly how he felt about her and feel the same in the present. He leaned his head back against the rest on the seat, running a hand through his hair. Skye searched for words to say to his dilemma; instead, she turned the ignition and began to drive towards Mia and Rydia's family home.

Music started to flood into the enclosed space. The wind blowing through the open windows, caressing their skin and whipping their hair around. Skye reached over to take hold of his hand, without taking her eyes off the road. She was determined to prove to him and everyone else that she was there for him and not for some personal agenda.

Seth felt her warm hand take hold of his and without any hesitation he twined his fingers with hers. The music changed to an eerie intro, much like the song she sung the previous night. He wondered if she'd sing along to the words when they would start. She licked her lips, preparing herself to open her mouth.

"We are more than the tone of the language on our lips

and we are more than the who with which we choose to share our hips

and we are more than the nights with the lovers we have lost

and we are more than the years full of memories best forgot

and we are more than the hate when they tell us what to think

'cause we are more than the brand of poisons that we drink

and we are more than the that lies we hide in ourselves

'cause we are more than the truths used as weapons when we tell

and we are more than the ways in which we chose to close hearts

'cause we are more than some of our many splintered parts."

Her words dug deep into his heart. The song was a powerful one. In his eyes it meant that humanity was more than they were given credit for; but he mostly thought she was aiming it at their broken relationship. She was saying that they could overcome their previous problems and make a new relationship. He smiled at her and tightened his grip on her hand.

End Note: Okay, so now I have a serious question. Should I up the rating to M? There are potentially some parts I could add that would make it an M rating; but its up to you guys if you want to see some of the stuff. Let me know what you think and what you'd like to see happen.