A sharp slap, then another and another. The room fell quiet soon after except for Stephanie's worked up breathing.

Her eyes wide with anger and her lips pursed tight, perhaps in an effort not to start berating him. It took her a few seconds to compose herself, her hand coming back to her side. "Don't ever talk to me like that. Ever."

The Samoan looked up at her, his left cheek redder than the right, and they both saw a gleam of defiance in each other's eyes. He was all rebellious glory, even with his hands tied behind his back, while Stephanie posture dared him to try .

"Seriously, Roman," she rubbed her temples trying to not lose her composure, "we don't have to have a hard time over this." There was a pause, she looked back at the desk behind her. Hunter was comfortably sat at the edge of it with Seth not so far in the rear. "It's ridiculous to have you tied down just to try to reason with you." She walked around Roman, vulturous, measuring him as if he was prey. "If anything, you should be grateful Seth thought of you."

"And that we accepted." Hunter added. "We didn't have to, but we did. You want to know why?"

Roman didn't answer. He didn't care. He knew, however, Hunter would tell him anyway and the only thing he could do at the moment was avert his eyes from them focusing on the floor, on how this meeting would be over soon, on Dean.

How he wanted to be with Dean and abandon himself to the plenty emotions the blond caused in him. They had waited long enough, and the future didn't look as promising as it did when the suspension began. He should have known, he repeats it in his head again and again, that Seth's words I own you were more than a mockery intended to fire up the crowd and that it was too optimistic to trust luck for them to stick together in the same brand.

"I told you long ago, things could be a whole lot easier," Hunter glanced at Seth then set his attention again on Roman, "that you were considered to join us, to be with us. I think it benefits us all. You don't have to crawl and scratch your way back up to the top and the Authority can manage everything from behind closed doors."

Disbelief must have shown on his face despite avoiding looking at them directly, because Hunter smiled before continuing his soliloquy.

"And, now that the draft is done, we think it's time to set things straight." He clasped his hands together as he straightened himself up. Seth behind him looked worried, like he was waiting for something to go wrong at any given moment. "We have spared Dean, at Seth's request because he thinks that's the first thing you'd ask, and because it's convenient... for now."

"There are some things you should know about Battleground." Stephanie's voice was softer now, almost motherly. "You see, this Sunday is the last event where the three of you will face each other in a long time..."

Roman tried to listen to her, but her words slipped out of his mind just as they reached his ears. She could have been promising him the sun, the moon and the stars and all Roman could do was stare at Seth while his former little brother dedicated him an expression he couldn't quite understand. If The Shield hadn't been broken up, he could have sworn Seth was genuinely worried about him.

"It's your choice, Roman." Stephanie's irritating singsong tone marked the end of the monologue, one that he couldn't remember a single word of.

There was a prolonged time where the couple looked at him, probably waiting for a reaction on his part, any kind of smug retort or a flatout rejection of whatever plans the Authority had laid to him.

"I'll handle the rest." Seth spoke, still a little mouse in the corner of the room, though he sounded austere, like he got any real power next to Stephanie and Hunter.

They both nodded without turning around and exited the room.

Once they were alone, Seth walked up to him, almost desperate, stopping right in front of him. Roman still didn't want to give him the pleasure of acknowledging his existence beyond dedicating him a look or a stare or a glare. And, for one part, however small, he was glad they had taken the measure of tying him to the chair or he'd have tried to spear and super punch the hell out of them.

He didn't count with Seth still being a weasily son of a bitch. Maybe he was too naive for his own good. Or maybe Seth had fooled him just right... He pushed the thought out of his mind, it was the same damn thing: Seth was a weasel and he was a fool; there was no other explanation to him blindly walking into Triple H's office and not expecting something unpleasant to happen, for a sneaky set up in which he'd be, of course, at disadvantage.

Though he had to admit, they had earned their props. Pretending their little faction to be deceased when, in reality, they were laying low scheming to gain control once again. He wondered if Shane McMahon knew, or if he was part of it as well. Either way, WWE's power couple had played their cards well and Roman was nothing more than a pawn brought over to have Seth entertained, lift his name up higher.

"Hey," Seth's voice was soft, an unnecessary whisper in a room where it was only the two of them, "look at me."

Roman didn't know why he complied. He regretted it instantly though. Seth's brown eyes gazed down at him with such warmth that he mistook him for his old self, for the little brother he had loved so much and tried to protect... Except that same so called brother betrayed him, and Dean. He had easily destroyed them regardless of all the love he was given and, worse, he had promised that love back, he had sworn they'd stay together and tough whatever came their way out.

"Did you really ask for me to be drafted to Raw?" He cast his eyes down again.

"Yes and no."

A tired huff of a laugh escaped the Samoan's lips. What kind of answer was that?

"I mentioned Stephanie how good it'd be if she kept us together, to feud and maybe stir things up, you know."

"That you can do well."

"Are you hurt because Dean got to Smackdown?"

Roman gave him a withering look, almost a scowl.

"You have to let him go." Seth leaned on him, his hands resting on Roman's shoulders as he sat on his lap, straddling him. "How long do you think you can cling to him?"

He was confused at first, then he shook his head in annoyance. "Cling to him?"

His words came out almost muffled, his jaw tense with dangerous rage that made Seth draw back a little. He knew better than to taunt the Samoan, although having him partially immobilized was reassurance that things wouldn't get too out of hand. As long as Roman had those plastic ties around his wrists, the situation was under control and Seth intended to make the most of it whilst trying to talk some sense into him.

"You said I would always be your little brother."

"We said a lot of things back in the day, didn't we?" Roman retorted.

"Look, I understand you don't trust me, I'm not asking you for forgiveness or anything, really -"

"Then? What's the point of all this, Seth?"

"This is the best for everyone." Seth let out a long sigh, his grasp loosening and his hands travelling to Roman's hair. "Even Dean must think the same. Have you talked to him since Tuesday?" The younger man waited for a reply, but having the silence stretch for far too long was more than he needed to prove his point. "I knew you wouldn't understand..." Seth sighed. "I also knew you wouldn't listen. That's why I told Hunter we needed to -"

"To tie me down? Like a damn animal?"

"You're telling me you wouldn't have gone berserk on us right away?" A small smile curved Seth's lips, peevishly irritating him. "Get it through that hard head of yours. This. Is. The. Best. For. Everyone." Each word was punctuated with a poke to Roman's temple.

He wished he could have kept his cool, but Seth knew how to get to him, he was quite aware of it; because, among the many things he was good at, picking at the distress of others was one he excelled at.

"Come on, Ro..." He heard him purr against his ear, Seth's hot breath shaking his resolve to hate his guts and sending a shiver down his spine. "This can only be good. Have you seen Dean lately? Shinning on his own, partnering with other people... You can't keep latching on him for push."

The Samoan blinked a couple of times, trying to stop the tears forming in his eyes.

"Hey," Seth held his face again, "I'm not saying that whatever you got isn't real or whatever," then he ventured his lips close to Roman's, almost brushing against them, "but don't you think he would have called by now and ask how you two are gonna work things out?"

At that moment, Seth pecked his lips repeatedly and murmured everything would be alright in between every smooch.

"Just think about it, Ro. You deserve your own glory. Not The Shield's, not as a tag team member, not as someone's meddling friend or hero. And so does Dean."

He didn't need to hear any more to let himself crumble, tears rolling down as he tried to repress the embarrassing, hushed sobs that escaped him. Roman hadn't felt this devastated since having Sheamus snatch the glory of the championship out of his hands within minutes of having it. He felt pathetic and he was sure he looked even worse.

"Say..."

Roman looked up, Seth's voice now too familiar, almost too soft and kind for the Samoan to believe it was actually his. He was so used to it being harsh, loud, always throwing snarky and hurtful remarks.

"Do you still love me? Am I still your little brother?"

It was thrown so casually, in such a childish manner, that it made him see red for a second. His affection for the Authority's protege was a can of worms he had sealed and put away for good, he wasn't going to honor answering like they were chit-chatting about trivial things like the weather.

But it hit him then, that Seth thrived on being lavished, regardless of the situation. He got off on feeling his ego stroked, were it with words or sex or messing with someone else until they were screwed over. That was the Seth he remembered, how he proved himself to be so far since his return too, fixated only on what he wanted no matter what he had to do to get it.

"Should I take your silence as a no?" Seth's lips were pressed against his, a slow kiss ensuing. Hard and dry, too bitter for Roman to even pretend he wanted to reciprocate. "Ow!" He hissed, moving away a tad, one of his hands quickly on his mouth. "You bit me! Motherfucker, you bit me!"

Roman smirked at his small victory before licking his own lips. He had bitten hard enough to draw blood, the taste lingering on his tongue, and, though he anticipated immediate retaliation, he didn't bank on Seth plunging for another kiss. This time it was wet, aggressive, and it had him savoring the same pain plus some nips on his lower lip.

"You want to play, Ro?" A sensual murmur against his cheek along with light panting. "I have been wanting to play with you."

"S-stop, Seth."

They looked at each other. Roman panicking over how broken his voice had sounded, and how worked up he was from whatever was going on. Seth, on the other hand, appeared to enjoy it too much; his stupid face sporting a mischievous smile, just like he did when they were still brothers and he took pleasure on teasing him and Dean to the point of barely making it to the room - or anywhere - to fuck their brains out.

His cellphone ringing startled them.

"Let me get that for you." Seth chuckled.

As his hands snaked into his pocket, the vibrant sound stopped.

"Oh, look who it was." He showed him the screen before it locked. "You must put a password on this or something," he said as he tapped on the phone non chalantly, "because you never know, man. What if someone gets his hands on this and everybody finds out about you two."

"Please, Seth, stop. I'll do whatever Stephanie asked, just..."

Seth halted his prying and took in the sight of one of his favourite boy toys, shaken and his obstinacy broken. He should have felt guilty looking at those big brown eyes swollen, still a bit teary. He didn't, however, a sadistic satisfaction warming his insides at the thought of getting under the Samoan's skin to the point of wrapping him around his finger and doing with him what he wanted whenever he wanted.

"Do you think I would do something like that?" He asked innocently, pretending to be offended. "Don't be silly, Ro. You got as much dirt on me as I got on you. Besides, I wouldn't out you two when I'm trying to rekindle our relationship. I'm just gonna tell Dean you're busy, that you'll call back when you're free."

Seth resumed tapping on the phone's screen.

"What do you call each other? Baby? Babe?" He saw him snarl, it only did wonders on Seth as he typed away. "By the way, has Dean told you about us hanging out? We did a lot together this month you were gone."

"W-what?"

"Oh, he didn't tell you." Seth sighed and showed Roman his own phone again. "Is this okay?"

The text read a concise message. Busy w/meeting. Call u when I'm done. Seth's here.

"Took you so long to write that?"

"Aw, come on, man. I'm doing you a favor here." He replied to the older man's mockery as he shoved the phone back into Roman's pocket.

"Just let me go already." Roman saw him go still, not making a sound and, certainly, not removing himself from his lap yet. "I won't beat you up if that's what you're thinking." He sounded tired and he realized he felt drained from the moment he was left alone with Seth.

"Okay." Seth whispered. "But you have to do something for me first." Roman raised his eyebrows, this time lacking his characteristic smugness, and he felt proud of himself on the feat of demoralizing the Big Dog, the start of a - most likely - long process of breaking him in.

"What is it?"

Seth gloated on how cooperative he sounded all of a sudden.

"You sure you gonna do it? For me?" He saw the other man nod slowly, avoiding eye contact, and another wave of pleasure washed over at the thought of Roman dawning on his willingness to comply, even though there wasn't much will involved when there was someone like Seth pushing and pulling to get things his way. "It's nothing, really..." He grabbed the Samoan by the chin, forcing their eyes to meet. "I just want you to kiss me. Like the old times, like you mean it." Seth inched in, his hot words ghosting on Roman's face. "If it feels half assed, I'll leave you here and who knows who might come in and find you in this position."

He laid it out breezily, as if the mention of leaving Roman there tied to a chair wasn't a threat, and let the other take his time to consider it. Seth felt quite good about himself, like he was being so thoughtful and kind with his actions. He could have puffed his chest with pride, but there were more important things to pay attention to than bragging about having won - yet again - against Roman.

Then there it was, a minimal bob of his head, and Seth was close to trembling with twisted excitement.

A jagged exhalation preceded a soft brush of their lips, an inadequate shy start, but soon the younger man moaned at the sensation of Roman's tongue softly making its way into his mouth. Soon they were breathing hard against each other, kissing with a hunger that took Seth beyond of what he intended to do at first.

"Let me touch you." He gasped with delectable thrill.

He didn't give Roman the chance to reply, his hasty hands undid their pants and, in an instant, Seth was caressing and squeezing the Samoan until he was satisfied with his hardness.

"S-Seth... I don't -"

"Shhh."

They resumed kissing as Seth stroked their cocks together. It had been so long since he had had him under his control, flushed and undone, giving and recieving such delicious pleasure that he sensed his climax approaching.

The Samoan cursed with a short breath.

"You want to come?" Seth nipped the other's neck, licked his ear, stuff that he remembered turned Roman on when making out. "Answer me, Ro. Do you want to come?"

"This isn't right. We -"

"That's not what I asked." He twisted his hand with a squeeze and felt Roman's legs quiver underneath him. "Just say it. Say it and we'll come, I'll untie you, you'll go and we'll pretend this didn't happen. Sounds good, huh?" When he didn't get a reply, he let go of Roman's dick. "Fine, I'll get off on you and leave you here."

Seth leaned back, bracing himself with one hand on Roman's knee, and picked up where he left. He jerked his hand up and down roughly, the tip of his cock reddening with the friction.

"Make me come."

It was a quick, low mumble, but it was enough for Seth to slow down.

"What? I didn't hear you."

"Make me come." Roman's deep voice was like a growl.

Seth's cock twitched in his hand. He gulped, his mouth too dry out of the blue.

"That's all I wanted." He croaked, not wasting time on rubbing against him before wrapping his hand around their two cocks. Both of them cussed and Seth tried his best to muffle their moaning and grunting with sloppy, open mouthed kisses to no avail. He didn't care, though. Vince McMahon could have walked past the office and heard them, Seth wouldn't have stopped. Just imagining it made him hotter. "Shit, I'm gonna -"

Seth cupped as much of his orgasm as he could on his hand, yet he didn't count on Roman coming right after making further mess on his palm and spilling a little on their clothes.

"Fuck, Ro. You're so hot."

"Screw you, Rollins. Let me go already." Roman grunted letting his head fall back.

"Alright, alright. Jeez!"

Roman felt light headed. It was too much. In every sense.

Seth get off him and heard some rustle from Hunter's desk. Without saying another word, the younger man tugged at his wrists maneuvering around the ties.

"You're set to go." Seth told him as he threw the shredded plastic into the trash bin and placed a letter opened in a drawer. "I hope next time we don't have to go through so much trouble to reach an agreement." He laughed heartily.

Roman felt his blood boil. "There won't be a next time."

He left the office before his urge to beat Seth to a pulp won over. He felt humiliated, used, and - above all - he felt dirty. How would he face Dean when he couldn't gather the courage to call back and tell what happened? A bitter taste crept in his mouth. Seth had him tangled up in his sick game and, from the looks of it, he wouldn't have much of a choice but to play along to save his boyfriend needless drama.

His stomach dropped. Did he still have a boyfriend to worry about? Seth had said something about him and Dean doing stuff while he was suspended... But he couldn't give a two faced bitch credibility, could he?

He stopped at the lobby wanting to run back and ask Seth what he had meant by hanging out.

His phone rang, the same name across the screen: Dean . Roman panicked, a lot of possibilities running through his head as the chiming continued. Perhaps Seth had already called him to snitch what went down in the supposed meeting. Or could be Dean calling because he was worried about him not returning the call like he, rather Seth, had said he would.

He sighed. Worse case scenario, Seth had told on him and he lost Dean. Best case scenario, Dean was only preoccupied and impatient. Roman wanted to bet on the latter.

"Hey, what's up?"

"Right about time you picked up, man." Dean's playful, raspy voice broke Roman's heart.

"S-sorry, babe, I just got out of the meeting and..." His voice faltered, there was silence for a bit.

"Are you okay? Is everything alright?"

"Yeah, it's just..." Roman looked around, scared that maybe Stephanie, Hunter or Seth were around watching. "Dean?"

"Hm?"

"I'm still busy right now and -"

"'S okay, don't worry. Hit me up when you're free."

His stomach did another flip. Seth had done a good job at planting doubts in him, his thoughts raced one after the other with senseless fear and his heart was a mess.

The man he was talking to didn't seem to be the one he promised that a month away from each other wouldn't affect their relationship, because he evoked him, his Dean, needy and demanding of attention and affection around the clock at his inconvenience.

"Hey, wait."

"Hm? What?"

Roman hesitated, the truth on the tip of his tongue though he wanted to demand some answers and explanations as well. He decided against it, blowing a long sigh against his phone.

"I love you, you know."

"Getting all mushy already?" Dean snickered. "You call me back when you're free and we'll see if you get me to say it back, okay?"

The Samoan laughed, weary, relatively forced. "Okay."

"For real, though."

"Yeah."

The blond hung up leaving him in a disarray of ideas and emotions that Roman didn't think he could ever assimilate, his biggest concern being what to do from there