All I've Ever Dreamed

Chapter 82

Dean and Roman got home at six thirty, both exhausted from the class. "Okay. How about pizza for dinner?" Roman asked.

Dean gave a wry smile. "Is that a bribe?"

Roman shrugged. "You said it, not me."

"Pizza sounds good, Ro."

"Good. Now go text him."

With a sigh, Dean walked to his bedroom, dropping his gear on the floor. He stared at his phone sitting on the nightstand.

He didn't really want to text Seth, but he knew he'd never be able to focus unless he did.

Swallowing his trepidations, he grabbed the phone and opened it. A new message from Seth had appeared.

Seth Rollins

Monday, April 4, 2016

5:25 PM

SR: Five minutes, Dean. Just give me a chance.

Dean's mouth felt dry. He wasn't sure he'd be able to talk if he called Seth. Slowly, he hit 'call' and raised the phone to his ear. It hadn't even rung once before he picked up.

"Dean." His voice was cautious, breathless.

"H-Hi, Seth..." He said nervously.

"I...um, damn. This is hard. It's my grandmother."

"You grandmother?" He repeated.

"S-She's been in the hospital for... a while, now, and last night I g-got a call-"

He broke off, but Dean could piece it together. He didn't know what to say. "Seth, I-I'm so sorry..."

There was a long pause. When Seth spoke again, his voice was thick with grief. "We're having the funeral this Sunday. I know I have no right to ask you for this, to ask you for anything, but... could you come? I-I really need the support."

"Of course." Dean said immediately. He heard a broken sigh of relief.

"Thank you-" Seth whispered. "I'll text you the details. And, D-Dean?"

Dean swallowed the lump in his throat. "Yes...?"

"...Nothing. G-Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Seth..."

Dean placed the phone on his bed and took a shaky breath. He felt a tear roll down his cheek.

A minute later, Roman appeared in the doorway. "Hey, I ordered the pizza, it'll be here.. soon..." He noticed Dean's expression. "What happened? What did he say to you, I'll-" He stopped as Dean gave a slow shake of his head.

Roman walked over and sat down beside him on the bed. Dean leaned against him. "His grandmother passed away." He said quietly, looking straight ahead. "He asked me to go to the funeral."

Roman wrapped an arm around him. "When is it?" He murmured.

"Sunday."

"Where?"

Dean shrugged. "Said he'd text me."

"So you're going?"

"I...I have to, Ro." Dean mumbled, looking at the ground.

"You don't have to. You don't owe Seth anything." Roman said firmly.

"He said the same thing. But this is different, Ro. It's not about us, it's... it's just for support."

Roman ran his fingers through his hair. "Do you want me to come?"

Dean hesitated. "No," he said. "I need to do this myself."

"If you're sure." Roman replied. "You wanna come watch some TV?"

"Yeah." Dean nodded.

Roman stood up, then pulled Dean to his feet. "I know how you're feeling. But you can worry about that Sunday, alright? Let's just relax."

Dean smiled slightly. "Okay." He followed Roman out of the room and into the kitchen, pushing Seth out of his thoughts, at least for the moment.