The air was awkward in the NXT Hall. However, Seth and Echo's slow walk to get there was pleasant, almost peaceful by comparison. Seth had gained the courage to ask Echo to walk with him, hoping that by doing so, they could reconnect, talk about their troubles, move past them, and maybe even find a way to coexist. Both had months to think about everything, to find a way to move forward and truly understand what had taken place to rip them apart. To get the anger out, to allow the hurt to settle. They both had friends to support them. Seth had the majority of the original group gathered around him, helping to console his broken heart and understand the unknown. Whereas Echo had the Darklings around her, Finn, in particular, had become her rock, and Aleister remained at her side as a brother.
"I'm sorry, Echo," voiced Seth, allowing her to lead him through the maze of halls the large NXT Hall offered. After all, she knew her way around the hall better than the school staff. All the Darklings did due to Triple H giving them access passes and hiding them away within the building. "I promised you I'd never be the reason you got hurt; I promised I would care for and protect you when you needed me most. I broke both of them, hurt you the same way Lacey hurt me," he added, noticing Echo's silence, although he was unsure if she was listening to him or if she was up to something else. After all, she had actively avoided the conversation with him when she knew he wanted to bring it up. She'd avoided others when they suggested it as well.
"It hurt more; you didn't trust me enough to say something when it happened," she replied, at least being open to talking this time and revealing what had hurt her the most. Wasn't Seth cheating on her but hiding it from her as if he believed she wouldn't eventually find out? "Telling me from the get-go would have saved the pain and all the anger. Sure, I would have been pissed at you and likely would have kicked your ass, but at least it wouldn't have been weaponized, and there wouldn't have been any drama," Echo calmly added, deep down she knew what had hurt her more than that was both Becky and Seth denying it, was hearing the truth from Finn instead of the person she was dating. "I shouldn't have had to hear that from Finn, nor should you or Becky have denied or tried to hide it."
"I guess I thought I was protecting you by not saying anything," started Seth, quickening his pace to walk at Echo's side. Even when they were at odds, she was still someone special to him. "Now I see how much of a coward I was and how stupid I've been. I overlooked one of the simplest things about you," he continued, mentally taking a note of all the turns while silently questioning if Echo was leading him astray or if there was a destination in mind. "You're anything but ordinary Echo Black; I was a fool for forgetting that and for thinking you couldn't handle the truth, for hurting you the way I did."
"So where do we go from here?" asked Echo as she pushed open a set of double grey-painted doors and entered the hall gym. "It seems to me you have a fork in your path, Mr Rollins," she teasingly added, as if they had been escorted back to ancient times. Seth could only chuckle. A feeling of familiarity washed over him once more. Although he knew she was right, he did have a choice to make, but so did she, even if she was oblivious to it.
"As do you, my lady," replied Seth, playing along with the act as he would have done before. Not missing a beat while keeping up with her.
"Ah yes, you refer to the dear Archer of Infamy," she began. Again, uncertainty shone in her eyes, however not as prominent as it had been when it came to the pair of them. "That talk has already taken place. Damian was quite the gentleman about it, took it in his stride," added Echo, although she didn't give anything away with her chosen words. Just as she knew Damian acted no differently, thrust no one was none the wiser.
"You Darklings really are good at acting," commented Seth, tying his loose hair into a man bun at the top of his head, and stepped into the wrestling ring mere seconds later. Being inside the squared circle would help clear his head and shine a light on which path he should take. "I feel like I've been torn between both paths. My mind is telling me to give it a chance with Becky, but at the same time, there's guilt there," he worded, stopping in the middle of the ring after running the ropes a few times.
"That's because you haven't faced the person who betrayed you," replied Echo, knowing his next words would have described his heart's struggle. He hadn't moved on because his heart was still on her. But there was another Seth had actively avoided, the one who hurt him far worse than he'd yet to admit. "Roman didn't just betray your trust, but the brotherhood you, Dean, and he shared. He pretty much smashed into pieces with Triple H's sledgehammer and grinned while doing it," explained Echo, shining a light on the betrayal that had started it all. The burning truth that hurt to accept but was worse when ignored.
"You knew I was avoiding it," answered Seth, a soft grin coming to his lips. Even now, she could still see through his act, see the truth he could hide from anyone else. "I don't understand his motives for all this," he sighed, finally admitting one of the truths he had hidden all this time. "I get he didn't want to be with Summer, but I don't understand why he'd play cruel games. He strung Summer on and now tries to hide his obvious relationship with Serenity. I question what game he's playing with her and why he's trying to play both against each other. I want to know what changed. When he became the heartless bastard he is now. When he stopped being my brother," spoke Seth, launching into a tirade of questions and letting his thoughts out.
Echo never once interrupted him. Instead, she listened and allowed him to get what plagued his mind off his chest. Although she would never admit it out loud, she also wondered what had sparked Roman's sudden and snap change. All she knew for sure was that Serenity wasn't the entire reason, just a small part. Her cousin played games with many, using and throwing people away to get what she wanted, doing all she could to secure her place at the top of the hierarchy and center of attention. But not even Serenity was capable of this much pain, especially when she herself was a victim of it, more than the normal backfire she normally suffered.
"Dean thinks Roman was always like this," spoke Seth, coming to sit next to Echo on the ring apron now. "He thinks Roman was acting the entire time, both with the relationship with Summer, the friendships, and our brotherhood. All of it was just a way for Roman to get ammo to use against all of us at a later date, to get rid of his competition," he revealed, starting to accept Dean's line of thought. After all, everything pointed to it: the change, the personality switch, tearing apart all the hope they had built; even the games suggested none of this was a snap decision but had been meticulously planned out over the years and down to the last little detail. Slowly, he was beginning to accept that the Roman they'd seen as a brother never truly existed; it was just an act. And that's what hurt more than anything, that was the betrayal that plunged the dagger into his and Dean's heart and twisted it with every new stage of the game, Roman was playing.
"Listen to me," soothingly spoke Echo, as she pulled Seth toward her upon noticing his dark eyes glimmering with unushered tears. The moment his head found rest on her chest, the floodgates broke, releasing all the pent-up pain and hurt. "What happened with Roman isn't your fault or Dean's. Roman's choices led him to where he is now. He's the only one who can get himself out of it, the only one who has to face the consequences of his own actions. Believe me, I know it hurts, but you have to let go. There's nothing you could have done, and you're only torturing yourself by holding yourself responsible for his actions and choices," she added wisely while offering him the comfort he'd likely denied himself.
"I don't want to lose you again," whispered Seth, allowing the words to slip past his lips. Like Echo, he'd been in denial about things but also feared what could be. "I know I have to decide where I want to go from here, either you or Becky, but I'm afraid of what will happen if I do choose," he added, not lifting his head from her chest, instead reaching to wrapping his arms around her, as if to ensure she wouldn't suddenly disappear again. After all, he may not have worded it, but Echo meant more to him than anyone truly realized. Only Dean knew that secret.
"You only see two paths when there are three," commented Echo, feeling as Seth moved his head slightly to look up at her, to which she offered a soft chuckle. "You have the option not to choose either, to find who you are again without all the relationship drama," she added as if giving hints to the path she herself had chosen when faced with the three-way fork. "Whatever path you choose, do it for yourself rather than for someone else. You deserve happiness, too; you've just got to be willing to take that leap of faith."
"I see why Cross calls you Fortune Cookie now," chuckled Seth, understanding why the crazy teen chose the specific nickname. All of those the Scottish teen had given nicknames to had a meaning behind them. Punk was the Voice of the Voiceless and, at times, pointless; Drew was Superman, Nikki was Wonder Woman, Maryse and Miz were Momma and Papa Bear. Aleister had been lovingly nicknamed Doofus, whereas Rhea and Dominik were Zip and Pip. "Do you think Roman will ever own up to what he's done or admit he's the baby daddy?" asked Seth, a prang of curiosity in his voice now.
Just like the others, He and Echo had received Roman's messages and ultimatum; although both had chosen not to answer him, both refused to feed the drama machine Roman had slowly morphed into since the Senior Year had begun. For the most part, they'd both avoid the topic of Roman and what to do with him, although the answer was obvious to both. There was only one solution to said problem and one Roman would likely not see coming despite all signs pointing to it.
"As much as I don't see eye to eye with Serenity, she's never actively cheated on partners. She's always ended relationships before starting another, even if quietly," replied Echo, suspecting Serenity was telling the truth about the pregnancy and the baby daddy. "She's an idiot, but she wouldn't lie about something like this," she added, reaffirming her belief Roman and Serenity were in an active relationship, even if the Samoan had tried and failed to hide it. "As for Roman owning up to his assholery, I doubt it. He showed he'd rather blame others than take responsibility. Although eventually it will catch up with him. There will come a time when he'll realize just how much he messed up; by that time, it will be too late to fix what he chose to destroy."
"Did I say I miss you?" asked Seth, pulling out his phone when it began to vibrate again. Echo repeating his actions with her own, a small chuckle escaped her again to see the messages in the ongoing group chat. Finally, Finn's little secret was known to the person it centered around, and their friends knew, too. "And we missed something."
"Finn's secret crushes," added Echo, already knowing both of them. The inside joke often held a lot of teasing; she'd tease Finn about his Star Wars crush on Ahsoka Tano, and he'd fire right back at her by reminding her of her one for a certain member of Clone Force 99. "Ahsoka Tano and our precious Summer," she added, cluing Seth in so he didn't miss out on anything. "Means the attention gonna be on us, Becky and Damo, when we return. If it isn't already on the latter two."
"We can always distract them by focusing on the Roman problem and the prom at the end of the year," laughed Seth, allowing himself to truly laugh for the first time since everything went off the rails. He felt like himself again; Echo wasn't avoiding him; he was letting go of holding himself responsible for Roman's actions, and his family was alright, whole again. Now, they had to wrangle their way through the drama and decide what they wanted to do when they left school if they hadn't already chosen.
"Not to mention the tournament finals in a few weeks," replied Echo, reminding Seth of the big finale coming just before prom and graduation. In the midst of the exams, no less. It was still a mystery who All Star Academy would face in the final. In fact, all that was known was All Star Academy would be the host, and the NXT Hall, or the mini arena as students had come to call it, would be the battleground.
"No matter what we choose to do from here. You're my demon, Echo. You always will be," spoke Seth as he finally untangled himself from the gothic teen, pulling her to feet mere seconds later and into a proper hug this time. Holding her tightly, almost afraid to let her go. After a long while, the pair pulled away, leaving the hall with the intention of rejoining their family, knowing questions would be awaiting them. Especially when it was obvious the rest had noticed their disappearance.
"Good, 'cause you're stuck with me, Architect," laughed Echo, calling him by the old nickname, one that had since been replaced by Kingslayer and Messiah by some. "For what's its worth? I've missed you too."