Rose wilted away.

        In only two months time, Jack deteriorated. She spent practically every moment by his side. And then the inevitable came.

        He had died at night in her arms while coughing up blood. He kept repeating that he didn't want to leave her over and over again. And then his heart just stopped and his body stilled. She had spent so much time crying and clinging to him before she finally let someone take his body from her.

His funeral was a couple of days later. She was practically catatonic as she sat at his funeral that was outside. Even when it ended, she still sat there. She watched as his casket was lowered into the grave. She watched as people shoveled dirt on top of it and eventually it seemed like the Earth swallowed him whole.

He was gone and she was here. Alone. He had been her forever and now forever was gone, too.

______

Her father had to deal with three messes. Cruises, the bear-hug that Kendall created, and herself. He was so worried about her that he had her stay with him for a couple of weeks. He even brought her to work just to keep an eye on her. But she didn't do much besides sit in a chair and waste away.

Her chest felt empty like she could no longer feel the heart that beat inside. She was a shell. A rose with all the petals fallen off.

She no longer drew any fashion designs anymore. She had given up being CEO of her oil company. She was going to sell her shares rather carelessly as well but her father stopped her from doing it. She didn't really care. She had no desire for anything anymore because the one thing she wanted she couldn't have.

         So she merely wasted away for two weeks. She sat in the office with her father and watched the skyline alone. One day she had actually broke down crying in the middle of a meeting her father had. Gerri had gently escorted her to the bathroom to get her sorted out.

         Roman had commented to their father about her, "Dad, I know she's in a bad place but maybe you shouldn't bring her here. It's not really a good look."

         "Shut it, Romulus."

          And that was the end of that conversation.

           When night came, Rose would fall asleep and then wake up crying. Her father had comforted her and patted her back as he held her, "I know, Rosebud. I know. Just get it out."

         He had done it every single night without fail. He hated that she had to know such true loss like he did. He had never wanted any of his children to know that pain but, especially, Rose. Named after the sister he lost, he had never wanted her to know death. That was the whole point of naming her Rose, she was supposed to be the one he protected from that pain unlike his sister that he couldn't.

         _____

        After two weeks, Rose had enough. The emptiness inside her chest created an ache so raw that she thought for sure she'd look down and there'd be a crack. She was tired of the pain.

          So, she moved back to her own apartment so there'd be no supervision. For the next several months, she went to parties and drank herself into oblivion.

       It made her ever so numb. Until, of course, she woke up from the hangover and the ache in her chest was still there. So, she'd just repeat the cycle and she didn't give a fuck who watched her self-destruct. But there was one in particular that was a little more interested than the others.

Lukas Matsson.

It was New Year's Eve and there was a party in Greece. A hotel had been rented out for this party and the whole top floor became a night club. It was dark and there were flashing lights.

Rose was in the crowd dancing. The new year had already begun. She had a wine bottle in her hand as she held her arms up in the air while swaying her hips back and forth slowly. She would take swigs of alcohol occasionally.

Lukas was sitting on a couch against a wall in corner but he had his eyes on her while he took sips of his beer. He had his eyes on her all night. It was the first time he saw her since the death of her husband.

             It wasn't the first time he had seen Rose Roy. He had seen her at other parties and he had gazed at her longingly then, too. But everyone knew that she was absolutely loyal to her husband so it was useless to approach her.

            Until now.

     Rose started to feel sick to her stomach as she danced. So she moved away from the crowd and towards the outskirts. She wound up in front of him swaying a bit as she gave him a cute, little dazed smile, "Hi."

          Lukas stared at her and he was bit floored that she was in front of him after years of wanting to talk to her as she continued and pointed to the spot beside him, "Is this seat taken?"

         He shook his head as he stared at her blankly, "All yours."

          She smiled wider before she stumbled into the seat. Lukas grabbed her forearm to steady her as she sat down, "Easy."

          Once she was sitting, she followed his hand up to his face. She stared at those bright sky blue eyes for a moment before she revealed without thought, "People always said your eyes were pretty up close. They really are."

           He smirked as he leaned closer to her, making her swallow with the nearness of his bright, hypnotizing gaze, "Well, you have pretty everything."

"No," she hiccuped with a small pout. "I have a birthmark on my ass. It's not pretty."

"Oh, do you?" his eyes traveled down like he was imagining her with her clothes off.

It made her giggle a bit as she hummed in acknowledgment. Her eyes kept closing and she'd keep forcing them open. She was so tired as she spoke, "Can I use your shoulder as a pillow? Pretty please."

          He tried to act cool but his heart was racing. He leaned back against the couch and put his arm on the back of the couch as he shrugged, "Sure."

      And she immediately cozied up against him. It made him smirk a bit with the feeling of her pressed up against his side. But then she fell asleep and he just went on his phone.

When the party died down, he roused her up to take her back to her room. She followed him like a sleepy little puppy that clutched onto his hand and she commented with a cute, dimpled smile, "Your hand is really warm."

"And yours is really fucking cold," he replied. "What are you? An iceberg?"

She started to frown as they stepped into the elevator together, "People say me and Jack finally hit the iceberg."

He looked at her carefully and he felt a bit uncomfortable with the topic as he replied awkwardly, "Sorry."

She didn't really respond and he quickly asked her what room number she was in. He wanted to change the subject.

"I don't know," her forehead wrinkled in thought. "Six something."

"Six something?" he formed an amused expression. "You are so drunk. I'll just take you to mine."

          When they got to his room, she still had that sad look on her face. Once she saw the balcony, she immediately went outside. She stared down at the ground below. It wasn't particularly far as no buildings in Greece were really that tall but the drop would probably send her to the grave.

           It was that possibility that made her kick off her shoes. Then she stood up on the stone ledge as she looked down over the edge.

          "What are you doing?" Lukas stared at her like she was out of her mind. "Get down."

         "I could do it," she said as she started to smile. "I could join him."

         "And leave people to find you?" Lukas said before he replied rather coldly as his own memories of his father popped into his head. "That's shitty. You're shitty."

            She turned around on the ledge to face him with a small pout, "I am not."

           "Prove it then."

         They stared at each other in challenge before she relented. She caved and got down from the ledge. Then she moved past him rather quickly into the room, purposely bumping into his shoulder like he was mean somehow.

        He stayed for a moment as he was a bit on edge. He was thinking of when he found his father dead in the car with his brains blown out. He quickly blinked the thought away and went inside the room.

             Rose was piling pillows down the middle of the bed and he couldn't help but form a little smile at her antics, "What? Are we five?"

               "Tonight, yes," she informed as she plopped on her side. He chuckled but nevertheless laid down on his side.

               Rose had fallen asleep rather easily due to the alcohol. He did not. He was on his phone but he was also thinking about how she had stayed in the world because of him when his own father did not. It made him latch onto her in his head rather obsessively. He wanted to continue to make her stay.

AN: the way that her and lukas already have a chokehold on me. And my boy luke is def obsessed with her; I mean, he already was but he definitely is now. He's gonna be so down bad for her