"So what's the big secret you have on your former brothers?" asked Serenity, gently moving some of her brunette hair out of her face, as she scrolled through her phone. The Samoan at her side, doodling in the workbook, not paying any attention to what was going on around him. Not to the other students in the history class, nor JBL rambling out about some event hundreds of years prior. He didn't even hear Serenity's words, despite her being right next to him. His thoughts blocked out everything, due to being so loud.
So much had changed in the month since the Wrestling Tournament's first round. He'd resigned from the team, shocking the entire school. He'd made changes to his own life, no longer being so focused on being a school athlete, he wasn't phased by popularity anymore, nor did he care for the gossip, drama, and the never-ending parties random students threw. His attitude towards his school life had done a 180 too, he didn't pay attention in the classes he'd branded useless, and he didn't interact with those he now saw as beneath him either. But despite all the changes, he had struggled with some things.
He struggled with the idea of letting his friends go. Especially Seth and Dean. Summer to had been a difficult decision. Despite his cruelty toward the leggy blonde, he still cared for her. He hadn't ended their relationship, for fear of what would happen if he did. She was still a shining ray of light in his school life, seeing her in tears made his own heart hurt, even more so when he knew he was responsible for her pain. Seth and Dean were something else, he didn't want to lose them either, so hoped by threatening to reveal their secrets, they would see he still cared and didn't want to lose their brotherhood or friendship. Despite what Serenity said, they weren't his former brothers, they were his brothers.
"Hello. I'm talking to you" spoke Serenity with frustration, as she waved a manicured hand in front of Roman's face. He blinked a few times, before shaking his head, a sigh escaping his lips as he turned his attention to the brunette who had fooled herself into thinking she had control and had miraculously become the Queen of their year. She had been blinded by her own desires, she hadn't paid attention to the obvious truths waving in front of her. "I asked you what the big secrets you have on Seth and Dean" repeated the judgemental brunette, her attention fully on the Samoan now, as she waited with the expectation he would answer.
"Just things they're not so hot about others knowing" replied Roman, once again second-guessing himself. He questioned himself on why he had allowed the brunette at his side to manipulate him so easily. If her plan was to isolate him, then it was working. Her silky words had been what he thought he wanted to hear, but the poison had been what did the damage. She had tricked him into thinking those apart of his friend group were holding him back, made him believe they were just using him. She'd whispered he was the only reason why the wrestling team had succeeded. He had carried them.
But now he was seeing it was all just a way to pull him from where his heart truly lay. To isolate him from those who cared. He'd resigned from the wrestling team, and Seth and Dean remained a part of it, thrust getting the chance to talk to them would be difficult. Hunter put the whole team through rigorous training in order to ensure they were ready. He didn't know how to face Summer now, she'd stopped asking questions, and instead avoided him, as if he was a plague. Those apart of the mix-n-match group weren't fond of him at the moment either. Finn and Becky were too busy arguing to care what was happening with anyone else. They had paid the price for his threat, as Becky had come clean to Finn about something before the Samoan could utter the words.
The trouble with Finn and Becky had also extended to Seth and Echo, especially when Becky had told Seth she had come clean and Finn had clued Echo in. To say there was trouble in paradise was an understatement. But despite the obvious trouble all four of them had tried to put their differences aside to be there for Summer. The girls still spent the previous weekend together as arranged. The mismatched group had also continued on with their plans and built a small place together somewhere in the woods.
"Like what?" asked Serenity, her hazel eyes glimmered with malice, as it became clear all she wanted was to finish what Brie and Daniel had started, although the younger Bella Twin had regretted her actions, she had changed her ways and become a member of the group, joining forces with Nikki again and reuniting the original Twin Magic. Once again the Samoan sighed, questioning himself on why he had allowed Serenity to meddle with his head, let alone why he entertained her being around. All he wanted now was to fix what he had stupidly allowed to be broken, and for things to go back to how they were before. Something he was quickly realizing would be difficult if not impossible to do.
"It doesn't matter" grumbled Roman, crossing his arms over the desk in front of him and burying his head in them. Allowing his mind to wonder once more, as he chastised himself for his stupidity. The mix-and-match group was falling apart, anyone could see it, and he was to blame. Had he just kept his mouth shut about the secrets, then the cracks wouldn't have turned into gaping holes in the foundations. Becky and Finn would still be happy together, Seth wouldn't be moping around and Victory wouldn't be avoiding Seth. The group wouldn't have been split as it had.
"Yes, it does" replied Serenity, ignoring JBL when he called on her to answer a question. The brunette only paid attention when JBL all but slammed a book down on the desk in front of her, scaring her into paying attention. The cowboy repeated his question and stood before the teenager until she answered, yelling at her when she got it wrong and insisting she try again until she either got it right or gave up. When she did finally give up, JBL savagely congratulated her on being the center of attention, while also suggesting she use her time in detention to discover some form of intelligence. His last comment was thatLooks aren't everything.
After the embarrassment and being made the butt of jokes, Serenity fell into silence. Refusing to utter a single word to anyone and storming from the class the moment the bell rang. The brunette went straight to her favorite hiding spot, the girl's bathroom on the far side of the 1st floor. Once there she took out her phone, expecting to see a message from Roman asking if she was okay or questioning where she was, but there was nothing. Nattie had asked if she was okay, confirming JBL's wicked behavior was already common knowledge, no doubt thanks to the others in the class with her sending messages to friends and laughing about it.
Roman on the other hand went to the third floor of the school. Ignoring the remarks running through his mind, instead, he listened to his heart as he went looking for those of the mismatched group. It was too cold for them to be outside on the bleachers, so the art floor was where they would normally hide, laughing and joking among themselves. The moment he stepped from the back stairs, he couldn't help but notice how quiet it was, there were no jokes being told or rowdy laughter, just quiet almost whispered conversations. He didn't move from the shadows, instead, he tried to comprehend what he'd help do, he'd helped tear his friends apart, potentially even destroying something that was good for everyone.
"What do you want Roman?" voiced Seth upon the brunette noticing he was there. His question was quiet, and filled with sadness. His dark eyes echoed the sadness and shone with pain. The others there looked around when Roman shuffled closer, only then did the Samoan realize why it was so quiet. Several were missing.
Seth leaned against one of the pillars, avoiding all contact with Becky, not even glancing in her direction. Renee and Dean were close to Seth, whereas Corey and Carmella sat on either side of the Irish lass kicker. Summer had her head against Seth's shoulder, she didn't bother looking at Roman, nor even acknowledge he was there. Miz and Maryse looked around the group with sorrow, questioning how things had come to this and why something so great had been destroyed. Punk at least tried to act like things were okay even when it was clear nothing was, whereas Drew sat quietly at Nikki's side, mindlessly rubbing his thumb across her hand. Even the normally crazy AJ was quiet and brought down by sadness.
"To apologize and to fix what I stupidly helped break" sadly uttered Roman, as it finally dawned on him who was missing. Aleister, Finn, Cross, Echo, Rhea, and Damian, the Darklings. Within seconds, it dawned on him Brie was also absent, which only brought on the question of where she had gotten to. Not one of those present spoke a word, some didn't even look in his direction, instead, they waited for him to continue, as if they were expecting him to cause more devastation rather than help as he claimed. "Where's Brie and the Darklings?" asked the Samoan, not being able to prevent the question from slipping from his lips. He hadn't seen either of them on the way to the art floor. As he thought about it, he hadn't caught a glance of the Darklings since Becky and Finn's break up, and the trouble between Seth and Echo had started.
"Darklings ... hiding probably" replied Punk, knowing as everyone did, it would be next to impossible to find them if they didn't want to be found. The Wyatt's were the same, it was a trick only those who had embraced the darkness seemed to know. "Brie went after Serenity, and said something about retribution" he added, wrapping an arm around AJ's shoulders, knowing she and Nikki had been affected a fair bit by the recent changes. Because of all the drama and games, they lost Echo. Although she still interacted with both during class, she didn't join them during breaks and lunch. Both had understood her reasoning, especially Nikki, but they were still down about it.
Roman had been about to continue when Becky stood from her spot making a B-line for him. Her eyes burnt with fury, that only seemed to grow the closer she got. Upon reaching him, she whipped her fingers across his cheek, her nails breaking the skin there. Roman had been stunned by the action, taking a few steps back as he blinked a couple of times. Deep down he had expected someone to do that, although he would have said either Nikki or Carmella maybe even Renee.
"As much I hate you right now. I know you aren't the only one responsible for our friends falling apart" voiced Becky, tears appearing in her eyes, as she thought about her own mistakes and a few other things. "Me and Seth should have told both Finn and Echo about the one-night stand back when it happened. If we had then it wouldn't have been used to tear us all apart. We thought keeping it a secret would protect them, when in reality we were only protecting ourselves from the anger and hurt" she admitted, owning her own mistakes and voicing her regrets, although she refused to say what else she'd been thinking about lately.
"How can we fix anything when the Darklings won't even show themselves?" asked Drew, bringing light to the question everyone dreaded. It was no secret Finn purposely avoided Becky, their break up was nasty, but despite it, he refused to drag their friends in the middle of the trouble, instead he had willingly hidden, thrust ensuring the Irish lass still had friends to support her, as he had the Darklings to support him. "Not to mention neither Seth nor Becky will even look at each other, let alone talk" added the Scotsman, almost chuckling the way both Becky and Seth looked at him, as if they were about to protest.
"I don't know how to get these two to stop being awkward" started Dominik almost as if he appeared out of nowhere, in reality, he had left one of the art classrooms, after spending a bit of extra time on a project. "But I do know where to find the shadow dwellers" he laughed, recalling Rhea and Damian teaching him the secret to disappearing. Although in this case, it wasn't that they disappeared, instead Triple H had put them up somewhere.
"You know where they are? How?" questioned Nikki, curiosity rining through her voice. A small grin came to her lips upon remembering Rhea had a soft spot for the younger Mysterio. It wasn't unusual to find Rhea sitting on classroom tables, with Dominik lying his head in her lap. Just as it wasn't unusual to see Damian messing with the others, using his height to his advantage.
"Hey, dating a Darkling has its benefits, as Seth there can tell you" voiced Dominik, holding his hands up as if to defend himself. "They're in the NXT sports hall. Some staff noticed they were beginning to scare the younger kids, so Hunter gave them access cards to the hall, and said they get their frustrations out there" he added, revealing the hiding place was none other than the new sports hall. Normally the gym hidden within it. "Just give them the heads up before you go over there. They tend not to let anyone in unless they know someone's coming. Plus Aleister and Cross have a habit of scaring intruders" finished the Mysterio, as he walked through the double doors leading to the main staircase.
"Did I ever say I love him sometimes?" asked AJ, causing a small choir of laughter, for the time in what felt like forever.
"Suddenly I'm jealous" playfully replied Punk, chuckling a bit louder when AJ shoved his shoulder slightly.
"I'm volunteering as tribute" spoke Roman, sending a message to Finn and Echo letting them know they were coming over, although missing Dominik had been the one to tell them where they hid. "If they're gonna glare at or scare anyone it's gonna be me. Least I can do considering I caused most of this mess" he added, the smallest of grins appearing on his lips, as he made a mental note to thank Dominik when he saw him again.
"What about your new girlfriend?" asked Dean, his words directed at the Samoan he had considered a brother, something he'd questioned a lot over the weeks. "I doubt she's gonna be happy you're here with us rather than paying attention to her" he added, recognizing Serenity had likely influenced Roman's decisions, but not letting the Samoan off the hook completely. Roman on the other hand wanted to say Serenity wasn't his girlfriend, Summer was. But he doubted the leggy blonde wanted anything to do with him after what he'd done to her. Just as he doubted anyone in the school would believe he and Serenity weren't together. After all, everything pointed to it, they acted like they were dating, and they did things a couple would. They just never put a label on it, partly because Roman refused to.
"Not my priority right now" simply replied Roman, making it clear he had no intention of entertaining the selfish brunette. Instead, his focus was on fixing what was broken and hopefully bringing his friends back together, maybe mending his own relationship with each. Although he would understand if they chose to do otherwise.