A/N: Jeez, been a while since my last update. Apologies! I had a serious case of writers block for this one and I'm not overly happy with it, but if I didn't post it I'd probably sit staring at it for months so here we go – the final part!

Roman turns to Randy the second the door slams, "that means you too. Get out."

"Nah."

"Nah?"

"Yeah, nah. As in nah I don't think I'm gonna leave. Not yet anyway," Roman balls his hands into fists. He wants to slap the smirk off his face, and he won't object to beating Randy until he has to leave. Preferably on a stretcher. Randy notices the movement and laughs, raising his hands, "woah, easy there big guy, I didn't come here to fight. The kid wasn't lying. For some reason he loves your boy Ambrose and he came up with this stupid plan instead of dealing with his feelings."

Roman wants to believe him, oh he really does. There's Dean, crying on his shoulder while he admits he's in love with the younger man. And he could only imagine the joy if he found out Seth reciprocated his feelings. He could have his brothers back, his family back together. But... it's all too convenient, isn't it? They both admit their feelings for each other on the same day? No. It just doesn't sit right with him. Perhaps... perhaps the Authority has bugged all the locker rooms. Maybe this just some elaborate scheme to humiliate and break Dean once and for all. Roman isn't going to just stand by and let it happen. He's going to protect him. Because he isn't sure he could bare to see Dean in a state any worse than he is now. And he daren't even think about how Dean would react.

"Y'know, for some reason I just don't trust you."

"I don't blame you." Randy laughs. It seems... genuine. Roman allows his fists to uncurl as Randy shifts back and forth his feet. He knows one way he could gain Roman's trust but he isn't sure how comfortable he is with the idea. Telling Seth was one thing, but telling Roman... the man who has made it his mission to destroy him? He doesn't fear a fight... he doesn't really fear anything – well, he doesn't fear anything apart from spiders and possibly losing Cody. How can he be sure Roman won't use anything he says against him? Go running back to Hunter and telling him everything and leaving Randy to choose between his work and his love?

Or maybe he keep it to himself as a thank you for helping his brothers? Maybe he'd keep our secret just that in return for you helping his brothers keep theirs? He hears a voice – Cody's, always Cody's – say in the back of his mind. Even when he isn't there to help him see the best in people... he's there.

"You should trust me though. About this at least. Because..." he draws his phone from his pocket, unlocking it and handing the phone to Roman when the wallpaper of him and Cody is revealed, "he loves Dean like I love Cody. I know how it feels to miss someone and have them hate you. I'm not doing this for you or Dean; I'm doing this for Seth. He's a good kid. And I'm sick of him moping about." Randy's heart is racing as he falls silent. He watches the emotions as they flicker across Roman's face – anger, doubt, confusion, realisation – and waits for the response.

"You and Cody? You're... together?" Randy nods, "and Seth was really...? Fuck." Roman sits down on the bench, putting his face in his hands. To say he feels like a dick now would be an understatement. He'd shot the younger man down, made him cry, after he'd gathered the courage to confess his feelings.

"I don't think he'll blame you for reacting the way you did," Randy slowly walks over to where Roman is sat and joins him. Both men are, admittedly, unnerved by the... friendliness. For so long they've been bitter enemies, and now Randy's here trying to help? "Don't suppose you know how Dean feels about him, do you? He doesn't seem like the type to spill his feelings."

"No, he really isn't. But just after we ran into you in the corridor earlier... I think it hit him hard and he kinda – he told me he's in love with Seth so... I suppose we've just gotta figure out how to get them to admit it to each other," Randy hums in agreement, "but don't think this makes us friends. I'm only doing this for them."

"I know. Soon as we get this sorted I'll be back to beating your ass every night." Roman laughs, forcing Randy to crack a smile also, and shakes his head. They both know this is simply a ceasefire, both know that before long they'll be deliberately sabotaging each other's chances at the titles. But in this ceasefire, Roman finds the familiarity comforting – he hasn't been able to joke around with Dean much since Seth jumped sides – and Randy? He can't help but wonder whether he would've gotten on with Roman had the situations been a little different.

"So," Roman starts, bringing the conversation back to the matter in hand, "I think I might have a plan..."

Dean sits staring at his pint, his right index finger dancing around the rim of the glass. He doesn't want to be here. He just wants to go back to his room and sleep. He's exhausted after everything that's gone on in the past 48 hours. He sees Seth hanging out with Randy yesterday, then he has an embarrassing breakdown in front of Roman, then he wrestles and jumps straight in the car to drive for five hours – a journey that would've only been three hours had they not managed to get stuck in a queue caused by a crash on the highway – and then he gets to sleep for about an hour before Roman hauls his ass out of bed and he has get ready for the Smackdown taping where he gets beat up again. And now he's here. Exhausted and irritable knowing there's a soft comfy bed with his name on it just a few minutes away.

He would've said no if it weren't for Roman's begging. He sounded so desperate that Dean was certain his friend would fall on his knees if he had to. He couldn't say no, even though he knew immediately that Roman was up to something.

And half an hour later, he still hasn't figured out what, but he knows there's something going on. As it turns out, he doesn't need to wait much longer...

Seth enters the pub with trepidation. On the journey here, Randy had told him he and Roman had come up with a plan. Seth was expecting... well, he isn't sure what he was expecting, but just walking in and sitting down with Dean? There is no way in hell this is going to work. This is crazy. This is –

"Randy!" Seth's eyes dart around in search of the familiar voice, before settling on Roman, who gives them a small wave. He watches as Dean's eyes bulge in disbelief, h head snapping back and forth in confusion with such speed and force Seth is almost certain he'll give himself whiplash. Randy nudges him with his elbow and they both make the short journey from the bar to the booth. Dean's eyes grow wider with each step.

"Roman! What the hell?" Dean hisses as he slams his hands down on the table, his body vibrating with anger. Yeah, someone is definitely getting punched. Though Seth thinks Roman might be a contender now.

"Look. I figured we should all talk. Y'know. Try and clear the air a bit."

"Try and clear the – are you kidding me? No. There's no way in hell I'm gonna talk to him." Seth feels his chest tighten. Dean spits out 'him' as if any other name is poison. He remembers the days when Seth's name would be said with fondness, huffed out amid laughter when Seth's hands were attacking Dean's sides; when his name would be wrapped up in a moan while Seth tried to wake him – just the thought still causes his stomach to flutter. But all the sweetness has melted away, and all that's left is a bitter taste.

"Dean–" Roman begins.

"No! After everything he's done, you think I can just sit be all chummy with him? You know how much... you know–" Dean's words come to a halt, and Seth watches as Dean allows his mask to slip. His face is pained with despair, and it hits Seth just how much he hurt Dean. He hadn't – it's not like he thought Dean wasn't upset. But he's only seen Dean angry since, and he hadn't even considered the fact that maybe his anger is all a front and that maybe Dean is hurting just as much as Seth...

He's so lost in his thoughts he doesn't realise Dean is talking again, but he hears the end of his rant. Four words that feel like a fatal stab wound to the heart, "he's dead to me."

Roman's eyes instantly shoot up to meet Seth's. His former teammate stands motionless, eyes firmly planted on the side of Dean's face, but they're not focused on anything in particular. There was a time when they'd laugh at the phrase – Dean would always say it so melodramatically of one of them dared to question his taste in music or films. But there's no laughter this time. No small smile playing on the edge of Dean's mouth. Roman's eyes move to Randy, and they're both thinking the same thing – this was a mistake. Randy opens his mouth to speak, break the silence that has fallen across the booth, but Seth beats him to it.

"I get it," he nods his head slowly, "I'm just gonna... I'm gonna go outside for a bit."

He's ruined any chance he ever had with Dean, all because he got scared. He took all the trust Dean had placed in him, all the friendship and care, and ran like a child. He pushes his way through the crowded bar and steps outside. The night air bites at his skin, and he finds himself wishing he could steal Dean's jacket like he used to. He leans against the wall next to the door, tears starting to pool in his eyes. He brought this all on himself really.

"I know you're angry man, but that was low."

"You've had a change of heart haven't you? Yesterday you were telling me I deserve better and that I should move on, now you're telling me to talk to him? I don't get it Rome," Dean drains his glass and gestures to Randy, who is still hovering over the table, torn between following Seth and comforting him, and helping Roman get through to Dean, "and when the fuck did you get so buddy-buddy with him?"

"We're not – look, I'm just trying to help Seth, alright?" Randy bites back. How have Seth and Roman lasted two years with this guy? He isn't sure he'd last two days.

"Help Seth with what?"

"With getting you, telling you that he's in love with you."

Dean's snarl falls flat, eyebrows drawing together, blue eyes darting between the two men, "he's what? How – how..."

"He told Randy the other night in that bar... he told me yesterday. We hoped he'd be able to tell you himself but, obviously not." Roman admits.

"How do you know this isn't just, just some bullshit they've come up with to... I don't know, mess with me or something?" Dean's eyes are locked with Roman, wide but not quite as lost as they have been for the past few weeks. Roman knows Dean wants to believe it but can't – he was in the same position yesterday.

"If I didn't believe it, would I be telling you? Would I get your hopes up? Would I agree to work with Randy to get you two boneheads to talk?" Dean shakes his head, not once taking his eyes off Roman, and Roman doesn't drop eye contact either. He knows how Dean works. Not enough people give him credit for his brains – all they see is his unstable nature, but Dean has a knack for reading people. He can almost always see when someone's lying to him. Once Dean finds whatever he's looking for, he presses his heels into his eyes, "I think you both need to sit down and talk, don't you?"

Dean forces out a hoarse "yeah", and slides out of the booth, following the path Seth took moments ago. He can feel his hands shaking and shoves them in the pockets of his jacket. All the things he wants to say are running through his mind at a hundred miles per hour, racing against his heartbeats when he opens the door and sees Seth leaning against the wall – eyes cast off somewhere in the distance.

How does he even start this conversation? Does he hug him? Tell him he loves him too? March over and kiss him? Or scare the little shit for a while as punishment for beating him with a chair when apparently he's in love with him? In the end, he goes for the latter option.

He kicks the glass bottle next to the door, watching as it takes flight before smashing against the concrete. Seth's eyes snap to the broken glass and then his eyes meet Dean's.

"Talk." Dean says shortly. He doesn't trust his voice to not break under the waves of emotions that roll over him as he looks into those brown eyes. And when he sees Seth flinch as he steps closer, it takes all of his willpower not to just screw it all and pull his brother into a bone crushing hug.

"I – I don't..." Seth is certain Dean has come outside to finally do what he's been trying to do for weeks – shut down the Seth Rollins business. His mind screams at him to run, but he stays rooted to the spot, mouth still open but no words coming out. Before he can even register the movements, Dean grabs two handfuls of his t-shirt and forces him against the wall.

"You don't what?"

"I don't... I don't know what to say. I – this is all a mess and I'm sorry. For everything. God. I've screwed up, I know. I just – I panicked. And I wish I knew what to say, wish I knew how to make it better, but I don't."

"Telling me why might be a start," he can feel Seth's heart racing through the soft cotton. It's probably cruel of him to put Seth through all of this, but after watching Seth act so uncharacteristically cocky and narcissistic for weeks, just seeing him so nervous and vulnerable feels... well, good probably isn't the right word, but it certainly makes him feel something – like he recognises Seth for the first time in so long because he looks so innocent and is looking at him with those big dopey eyes that make his stomach flip, "actually, no. Just answer me this. Is it true?"

"What?"

"Is. It. True?"

"Is what true? You're not making any–" The hands gripping Seth's shirt tighten and Dean leans closer. He can feel each shallow breath as it hits his lips.

"Is it true that you're in love with me?" He watches as Seth's eyes widen in shock, feels as the pounding in Seth's chest quickens. There's a couple stutters, then a sigh.

"Y-yeah."

"No, I wanna hear you say it." He hears the whine pass through the younger man's lips which causes the corner of his lips to quirk up into a smirk. Toying with Seth has always been one of his favourite pastimes.

"I'm... I'm in love with you."

"Good," Dean leans forward to silence Seth with his lips before they can begin to make a sound, both sets of eyes fluttering to a close. His hands, not content with the feel of soft cotton anymore, begin to travel up Seth's chest, over his shoulders and around to the back of his neck. He only lets his lips linger for a moment or two before he pulls back to see Seth staring at him as if he's grown a second head. He just chuckles and presses their foreheads together, grinning when he feels their noses brush. God, he feels giddy. Stupidly giddy, "cos I might kinda be in love with you too. Even though you're an idiot."

Seth laughs – a gentle thing tangled with a sigh of relief – and brings his hands up to rest on Dean's hips, fingertips dipping under his shirt to brush the skin there. Calm falls around them as they stand, just reveling in each other's company. It's all well and good, but Seth isn't content – not yet, "so… am I gonna get a proper kiss anytime soon or?"

Dean hums in consideration, "tell me why you did it, and you might."

Seth nods, taking a breath. He isn't even sure how to explain it, "I – I was stupid. I realised I was in love you and just... freaked out, I guess. Then Hunter comes and makes the offer and..." he sighs and shakes his head as much as he can within Dean's grasp. He can feel the hot wetness of tears spilling down his cheeks again just thinking about what he did, when all along Dean was – is – in love with him too. All those weeks of pain he put them both through. Now here they are. His emotions are all over the place, just like his mind. He hears Dean try to shush him, thumbs wiping the wetness from under his eyes as gently as they can, lips printing a kiss between his eyebrows. He gathers himself the best he can, "I guess I thought if I was away from you I'd stop being in love with you. Not because – I was just scared. Scared of being in love, scared of ruining our friendship… It's stupid, I'm stupid. I don't know how I can ever–"

Seth thinks Dean tells him to shut up but he isn't sure. His brain shuts down when those lips are reunited with his. He's never known electricity like it. Of all the lovers, he finds the biggest and brightest spark in the warmth of his best friend – the man he has been pulled and pushed toward since day one. Ever since those magnetic blue eyes met brown ones. They drew Seth in, and now, no matter how hard they try – neither of them can pull away.

Seth is drawn back from his thoughts when Dean bites his bottom lip. His hands move of their own accord – urging Dean's hips forward until they're pinning him against the wall and he can feel the heat and–

The moan Seth lets out is delicious. It sends Dean's heart into a frenzy. In the back of his mind he's faintly aware that they're still in public, that anyone could step outside at any moment and catch them, but that doesn't stop him from thrusting his hips forward just to hear that noise again, and again, and oh God when he pulls back for the briefest of seconds and sees Seth staring at him with lust-laden eyes and parted pouty lips he practically throws himself forward.

He pushes his hands further until they're at the back of Seth's head, and licks into the warm mouth, barely able to suppress a groan as their tongues touch for the first time and curl around each other. As the kiss becomes more heated, Dean becomes increasingly aware of the tightening in his jeans, and the solid warmth in the front of Seth's. The friction is too much but just, just not enough. He needs to feel him, all of him. Seth's hand is apparently on the same wavelength as it begins to journey up his chest, dancing over the skin and leaving behind a trail of goosebumps in their wake. Then they descend again, the scratch of dull nails causing his breath to catch in his throat his stomach to tighten. Even though the position is so familiar, he's never felt so on fire.

Then there's a hand cupping him through his jeans and he's certain his brain is about to short-circuit.

"Seth, oh fuck," Dean's voice is gravely and low, doused in arousal. It makes Seth want to squeeze his hand slightly to see what kind of reaction he would get. So he does. He watches as Dean's eyes struggle to even flutter open, and as his lips part to release a shaky breath, one hand falling from his hair to wrap around his wrist. His hand isn't pushed away, but it isn't being led closer either, "if you keep that up I'll throw you on the floor and fuck you right now."

"Maybe I want you to."

Dean huffs a laugh and turns Seth around to face the door. There's some shuffling behind him, then a heavy weight falls across his shoulders. Seth bites back a grin as he slips his arms into the sleeves of the jacket. It smells like cigarettes, alcohol, and that oh so familiar musk. It smells like Dean – smells like home. Not that he'll tell Dean that.

Then, Dean's lips are against his ear, "mm, think I'd rather wait till tonight. Wanna see you come undone on my sheets... Wanna see you come," he rasps, nipping at Seth's ear for good measure before groaning, "fuck, I just wanna see you."

Without thinking, Seth lets his head drop back against Dean's shoulder, an invitation for Dean to take his teeth and start nipping at the exposed skin – tongue soothing over each mark. Seth is about three seconds from tackling Dean to the floor when he steps away and brushes past Seth. He pauses in the doorway and turns, a smirk tugging at his mouth, "you coming, Seth?"

Later that night – when they're a tangled, sweaty, sticky mess of limbs under the covers, when they're still basking in the afterglow of the night's activities – Seth finds himself wondering, 'what now?'

Sure, their feelings for each other are now out in the open, but that doesn't change the fact Seth is with the Authority, and that they have a vendetta against Dean as well as Roman. If he were to just pack up and rejoin Dean... that'd put him in the firing line also. And, well, he thinks, in some ways, they're better off staying on their own. Roman's fighting for the titles, and both he and Dean are in the contract match. Why change anything?

But will Dean still want to be with him if he's still being beat down on a weekly basis? Will he make him choose between his career and a fledgling relationship? It's not like he doesn't know Dean and all his quirks, but being friends with someone is completely different to being in a relationship. While he would love to settle down with Dean, succeed and grow old together, that isn't something he can guarantee. And if he picked Dean, then the relationship broke down... that'd leave him with the Authority on his back and nobody to kiss the bruises better when he returns to the locker room...

"Shut up." Dean's voice suddenly mutters in his ear.

"I didn't say anything." He hopes.

"I can hear you thinking. You're an incredibly loud thinker," then there's a curve of a smile against his cheek, "then again, you're incredibly loud when you're doing a lot of things."

Seth chuckles and rolls onto his side to face Dean, who's already looking at him with sleepy blue eyes and cheeky smirk accompanied by dimples he can't resist poking just because he can. The action causes Dean to scrunch up his nose and God, Seth hates how cute this man can be, "I was just wondering… what happens now?"

"We sleep?" For that, Dean earns himself a pair of brown eyes rolling, "oh, y'mean... y'mean, with us?" Seth nods, "I just figured we'd stay how we are. We're doing alright, we're in the ladder match and one of us is gonna end up with that briefcase. Why change anything? ...You can be my dirty little secret."

"I think you'll find you're my dirty little secret."

Dean huffs and loops an arm under Seth's, pulling him close. He rolls onto his back, Seth following the movements and resting his head on Dean's chest. "mm, ok. We're each other's dirty little secrets. But we'll talk in the morning. Wanna sleep now. Shh." Seth laughs gently, silently agreeing, and throws an arm over Dean's waist.

He isn't sure how long they just... lay there. But eventually the hand drifting up and down his back begins to slow. And the rise and fall of Dean's chest evens out. And for the first time in weeks, Seth finds himself drifting to sleep with ease. He's always found it easier to sleep when he's home.

A/N: So there we have it. Our boys finally sorted themselves out! I'm a little unsure on the ending, but I'm in one of those sappy moods. And that kiss was the first time I wrote a scene that actually went into any kind of detail and it felt like it took forever to write. So yeah. I think it turned out alright. It still had me blushing like hell though – I don't know how people can actually write when they, y'know, do the do. But I digress. As always, all reviews are welcome! And thanks for reading!