Dead on the Inside (JENY&SETH)

[ROSE MERCER]

"Hey, Seth was making the plans, not me. And Seth wouldn't have made the plans if Jeny hadn't called him. So really, it all comes back to her." He smiled at her, though she did not return it. Did he really think now was the time to joke. At her insistence for him to call Seth the fucking Guard Dog off, he seemed to panic. "No! Rose, please! Stop running from me. What's going on?" She couldn't look at him. He'd work those big, brown, eyes and make her spill, and then she'd think she was whacked in the brain. He grabbed her shoulders, insistent. "Why are you doing this to me? I can't stand not talking to you. I can't stand you being angry at me. God, Rose, I love you." Before she could stop him, or pretend to stop him, he pressed his lips to hers.

It took everything in her not to kiss back. She gently pushed away, shaking her head. "Guillermo, I'm not mad at you. Or at least I wasn't, until you had Strong Arm out there bully me into a closet. I just need some space." Her face was stern, her voice thick with a forced calm. "It's not like I'm enjoying this, okay! I'm not over here having a big laugh at your expense. I'm dealing with some shit and- and it's real selfish of you not to just let me handle this!" Fuck, she hadn't meant to call him selfish.

But her mouth wouldn't stop moving. She couldn't shut the hell up, no matter how much she wanted too. "What did you think this was going to accomplish? I mean-" Her blue eyes shot up at him, a heat spreading in her chest. Who was she kidding? All she wanted to do was kiss him right now, but she was so mad. Why would he just assume that her needing a break was a punishment for him? Was that what she was about? Was that what he thought of her? HOW DARE HE? Angrily, Rose kissed him, not bothering to think anymore. What good was it serving anyway.

All of her frustration, and uncertainty, and irritation poured itself into kissing him. And it felt AWESOME! And wrong. Now she was being the selfish one. But Rose didn't care. Like Bruja said, she was just selfish. "This wasn't what I meant!" Rose ignored her stupid parasite, shoving Guillermo away with little force.

"You can't just come here and make me feel more awful than I already do, Guillermo!" She shouted, feeling confused. The confusion made her angry. She wanted to hit something! Seth came to mind first, of course there was a door in her way. And she didn't want to hit Guillermo, he had been through enough. Panting a little, Rose glared angrily at Guillermo. "Kiss me."

Again, it was not a request.

[GUILLERMO SALAS-ORTIZ]

"Guillermo, I'm not mad at you. Or at least I wasn't, until you had Strong Arm out there bully me into a closet. I just need some space. It's not like I'm enjoying this, okay! I'm not over here having a big laugh at your expense. I'm dealing with some shit and- and it's real selfish of you not to just let me handle this!"
"God, Rose, I'm sorry! What do you want me to say?"
His head bowed and he sighed. She was right.
God, this girl drove him insane.
"What did you think this was going to accomplish? I mean-"
Glancing at Rose, he caught her blue eyes, angry and confused. She kissed him forcefully and he wasn't sure whether to be frightened or elated.
She pushed him away a few moments later, thoroughly disappointing him.
"You can't just come here and make me feel more awful than I already do, Guillermo!" She glowered at him, her voice raising.
He stared at her, his eyebrows drawing together. Wait, when did this become his fault!? He briefly wondered what the guys thought of the conversation that they could probably hear.
"Kiss me." Her blue eyes sliced through him.
He frowned at her, giving himself up to the anger and frustration that Rose was obviously feeling.
He pushed her up against the wall, kissing her fiercely.

[ROSE MERCER]

Her heart started to race as he pinned her to the wall, her tapering fingers weaving into his dark hair, his lips touching hers hungrily. She could feel Bruja growing steadily impatient, but Rose didn't care. All she cared about was that the guy that she loved was here, kissing her, even though she had done quite possibly the worse thing in the world she could possibly do to him. "I'm.... sorry." She sighed out between kisses, unbuttoning her jumpsuit, revealing her jeans and tee shirt underneath, passion swaying her. "I didn't... don't want... to hurt you, Guillermo."

"Yeah, you're doing a cracker jack job there, Rose." Bruja growled angrily, as Rose pulled him closer.

Breathing heavily, Rose rested her head on his chin, slipping out of her boots gracefully. "Te extrañé. Tanto es, Guillermo." Gently, she brushed the hair from his eyes, her fingers slipping down to the stubble on his face. "Y quiero decirle que tan mal... Te necesito confiar en mí." She didn't know how he would react to that...

On one hand, Guillermo had always seemed to trust her when she needed him too.

On the other, he might be a little offended, as she couldn't trust HIM enough to tell him what was going on. But, it was more complicated than that. All he had to do was trust that she loved him, that she could handle this. If she were to be honest with him, she'd have to trust him not to think she was insane because she heard voices...

She spoke tentatively, her lips hovering over his. "Dame un beso? Mi amor?" She knew it was cheating, asking so much, then speaking so sweetly to him.

But he could always refuse.

Her fingers touched the hem of his tee shirt, and she could feel Bruja fume angrily. "You are so going to pay for this, Rose. Just wait."

[GUILLERMO SALAS-ORTIZ]

"I'm.... sorry." She sighed out between kisses, taking off the jumpsuit.
"I didn't... don't want... to hurt you, Guillermo."
He relaxed slightly with these words.
She cared.
She did care.
"Te extrañé. Tanto es, Guillermo.Y quiero decirle que tan mal... Te necesito confiar en mí."
Her smooth, cool hands slipped over his face. He breathed in her smell.
Her words made him pause momentarily.
She wanted him to trust her. Which meant she knew what she was doing. Apparently she had a reason that he couldn't know.
He was a little hurt that she wouldn't tell him, but some things just weren't his business.
He nodded, his brown eyes meeting hers, sad but understanding.
"Te amo, Rose."
His voice was confident and clear.
She may not agree at this moment, but he needed to remind her.
"Confío en ti."
She spoke tentatively, her lips hovering over his. "Dame un beso? Mi amor?"
He shuddered, drawing in a gasping breath of desire. He had definitely gone too long without her.
"Cualquier cosa que quieras."
He kissed her again, trailing kisses down her jaw and neck.

[ROSE MERCER]

"Te amo, Rose." She gave a small laugh, mouthing it back to him, wondering if he was really brave, or really stupid. She was, quite possibly, the worse person in the world to love. A barrel of crazy. Had he even a lick of sense, he'd turn and run as far away from her as he could. "Confío en ti." Her body relaxed, though she hadn't been aware that it had been tense.

He trusted her.

Good. That was good.

"Cualquier cosa que quieras." Rose's eyes danced over his face, the hollowness filling, before he washed over her with a shudder, his lips trailing down her chin and neck. Switching off the light, she pulled him close, her legs wrapping around his waist.

It was hungry.

It was passionate.

It was hot.

It was sweet.

It had very little consideration for precaution.

What happened next was like an incredibly enjoyable summary of Rose and Guillermo's relationship at it's best.

And when it was all over, Rose sat in Guillermo's arms, absently playing with his hands. She had a strange affinity for his hands, like his chin. It was odd, in her opinion, because usually when you asked what someone else found attractive in a person, they'd reply with something generic. Eyes. Lips. Hair. Rose liked his hands and chin. Firmly wrapping his arms around her torso, she rested the back of her head on his shoulder.

Rose knew it wasn't fair to ask for blind loyalty. Especially since she had sort of used sex to submit him. She could throw him a bone. "I started seeing a shrink." Rose blurted, instantly wishing she had chosen her words a littler wiser. How could she follow that up? Tell him she started seeing her right after the vanishing act? Somehow, Rose could foresee him not taking that well. "Her name is Gretchen. She's nice."

[GUILLERMO SALAS-ORTIZ]

After the fun, Guillermo held Rose, sitting on the floor in the closet.
He stroked her hair with his free hand, as she traced patterns on his other.
He couldn't help but wonder where they stood.
Rose's voice suddenly caught his attention.
"I started seeing a shrink."
He glanced down at her, surprised.
"Her name is Gretchen. She's nice."
"Really?" His voice came out a bit skeptical.
As Guillermo considered it, he supposed that it wasn't the worst idea. Come on, the girl had an abusive childhood, a recent traumatic experience and several strange, ever-changing relationships.
"What for? I mean, if you don't mind me asking."
He suddenly looked abashed, as he realized how personal of a question that was.
"You don't have to tell me. I just want you to know that you can trust me."
He gave her a weak smile, still not sure where their shaky relationship stood.

[ROSE MERCER]

"Really?" Apart of her wanted to laugh at his tone, knowing it sounded strange. But she merely nodded, waiting for him to speak again. "What for? I mean, if you don't mind me asking. You don't have to tell me. I just want you to know that you can trust me." The words hung in the air, as she focused on his hands, pushing on one of his cuticles.

"I know I can." She answered, after a moment, her voice quiet. "And I don't mind you asking. I mean, I know we're in a weird place but- well, I mean. It's not like we're too fantastic at being away from each other." A small, strange, laugh escaped her, though it didn't last long. It was true. They had just acted like they were locked away from each other for a year, when it had barely been four days. Guillermo was one of the most important people in Rose's life, if not the top one. She had to learn to be honest, or she'd drive him away.

"You're not really thinking about what I think you are, are you?" Bruja demanded, sitting across from her, her pose dignified despite sitting on a crate full of old car parts.

Rose ignored her, pressing her palm against Guillermo's, taking a deep breath. "It's a mixture of things really... mostly that I've sort of been hallucinating The Wicked Witch of the East since the car accident..." Biting her lip, Rose forced herself to continue breathing, trying to gauge a reaction without actually looking at him, surprised at her own casual tone. "You know... from the Wizard of Oz. The one who got crushed by the girl's house."

[GUILLERMO SALAS-ORTIZ]

"I know I can. And I don't mind you asking. I mean, I know we're in a weird place but- well, I mean. It's not like we're too fantastic at being away from each other."
She laughed quietly and he smirked, nodding in agreement.
He was delusional if he thought he could survive without her.
She pressed her hand into his and his fingers wrapped around hers.
Rose breathed in deeply, apparently collecting herself.
"It's a mixture of things really... mostly that I've sort of been hallucinating The Wicked Witch of the East since the car accident...You know... from the Wizard of Oz. The one who got crushed by the girl's house."
Guillermo stared at her, as she looked away from him.
There was a silence.
"No, really."
More silence.
Why was some obscure movie character her brand new excuse?
"Look, I said you don't have to tell me. But you don't need to invent some new game to go along with this whole thing. I thought we were done with the games."

[ROSE MERCER]

The silence could be sliced with a knife. "No, really." Well, that wasn't exactly comforting.

"You're an idiot." Rose frowned at Bruja, shifting to look at Guillermo's indignant face.

"Look, I said you don't have to tell me. But you don't need to invent some new game to go along with this whole thing. I thought we were done with the games." She regretted her game playing, which seemed to be coming back to bite her in the ass. Still, she held some irritation of her own. Here she was, being completely honest, like he's always wanted, and he wasn't believing her.

Of course that could have something to do with the whole: Not being honest in the past thing...

Rose pulled away from him, so that he could see how serious she was. "I'm not playing a game here, Guillermo. I'm dead serious. She is sitting, right there." Rose pointed to the box, as Bruja waved cheerily at Guillermo, knowing full well he couldn't see her. Okay, not the best argument. "You remember the day I left? I was acting weird, right? The tacky purple lipstick when I was not even going to a club, the stupid voice, the not speaking Spanish thing, the REALLY stupid voice. Had kind of that constant, patronizing, bitch, tone to it?"

"I'm sitting right here."

Rose continued, unabashed. "That was her. She.. took over my body or something. I don't know how... She hadn't done it before, or sense... but that's not the point. She's real." Was she real? Like, were hallucinations technically real. Ugh, she was not in the mood for semantics right now. "When I got hit by the car, I was in this waiting room, and I made a deal with her that she could live in my body if I didn't die. I mean, I didn't think it was real at the time, but...
" Rose sighed, pushing her mussed up copper hair out of her face. "The point is she's there and after the creepy sex thing she made some vague threat agaisnt you, and that's why I bolted." Rose took a deep breath, finally silent after her crazy person rant.

[GUILLERMO SALAS-ORTIZ]

She pulled out of his arms, suddenly indignant.
"I'm not playing a game here, Guillermo. I'm dead serious. She is sitting, right there."
He shot a look at Rose, to the area where she pointed and back again.
And that proved... what?
"You remember the day I left? I was acting weird, right? The tacky purple lipstick when I was not even going to a club, the stupid voice, the not speaking Spanish thing, the REALLY stupid voice. Had kind of that constant, patronizing, bitch, tone to it?"
He nodded, still looking at her warily.
Rose continued, "That was her. She.. took over my body or something. I don't know how... She hadn't done it before, or sense... but that's not the point. She's real. When I got hit by the car, I was in this waiting room, and I made a deal with her that she could live in my body if I didn't die. I mean, I didn't think it was real at the time, but...The point is she's there and after the creepy sex thing she made some vague threat agaisnt you, and that's why I bolted."
Rose took a deep breath.
"You know, I had almost the same thing happen to me. Except it was Shia Labeouf and some of the Transformers. They stay in my apartment and one of the robots is dating Jeny."
His tone had a kind of soft sarcasm.
"Okay, Rose. So if that was 'Bruja' that day, then, um.... where were you?"
Guillermo gave her a look of skepticism.
"And for someone who wasn't there, you sure seem to know a lot about it."
He wanted to believe her. But it didn't make any sense. Not to mention the fact that her track record for honesty wasn't very impressive..

[ROSE MERCER]

"You know, I had almost the same thing happen to me. Except it was Shia Labeouf and some of the Transformers. They stay in my apartment and one of the robots is dating Jeny." Rose's eyes flashed at his tone, while Bruja laughed heartily. Getting up, she kicked around the clothing pile for her jeans.

"Oh, you mean the shower head?" Rose snapped, wanting to make him uncomfortable. Served him right.

Here she was, finally opening up, confessing a secret that had been eating away at her for so long! And he was making dickish jokes at her. Fantastic. "Okay, Rose. So if that was 'Bruja' that day, then, um.... where were you? And for someone who wasn't there, you sure seem to know a lot about it." Sliding the jeans up, she scowled at him.

"I got to be in the audience. Lucky me." Rose spoke dryly, sneering slightly. Where was her shirt.

Bruja seemed to be fully enjoying herself. "Perhaps you should keep him around. I never noticed how delightful your guys banter is." The urge to beat try and throttle her brain parasite came over Rose, who instead focused on finding her cloths, tossing Guillermo's at him with an edge of force.

Finding the shirt, FINALLY, she thrust it on, snapping bitterly. "You know, I'm real glad I finally decided to tell you. The support is over-fucking-whelming." Bruja poofed away, as Rose sat down to put her socks and boots on.

She should have kept her mouth shut. It was worse than him thinking she was crazy, it was him thinking she was a liar. Which was unbelievable, because Rose had never lied to him. Even when she was denying his love, she could never come right out and say: I don't love you. Because it was a lie.

"Well, I'd hate to say I told you so-" Bruja's tone contradicted her words, and Rose could feel the victory radiating off from her.

[GUILLERMO SALAS-ORTIZ]

Rose threw him a nasty look and he instantly regretted his sarcasm. She stood and began putting her clothes back on.
"Oh, you mean the shower head?"
Guillermo closed his eyes in agony of the mental image that she had just given him. That was uncalled for.
Just as she was pulling up her jeans, she answered him.
"I got to be in the audience. Lucky me."
What?
What did that even mean?
Searching for the clothes, she chucked his at him. He took this as the cue to get dressed. She found her shirt, slipping it over her head and she glared at him, her voice cutting.
"You know, I'm real glad I finally decided to tell you. The support is over-fucking-whelming."
He rolled his eyes. God, he was really good at fucking things up, wasn't he?
"You know, Rose, I'm sorry. But how do you expect me to understand or believe you? This isn't exactly a realistic situation."

[ROSE MERCER]

Asshe laced up her boot, Guillermo started to reply. "You know, Rose, I'm sorry. But how do you expect me to understand or believe you? This isn't exactly a realistic situation." She looked at him sharply, her eyes revealing the brunt of her anger, while the rest of her face stayed smooth and passive.

Her lips thinning, she nodded, as if saying he won. Fine. He didn't have to believe her. It wasn't like, you know, TRUST was a foundation to a healthy relationship or anything. "You know, for future reference, following an apology up with a 'but', generally makes the original apology a bit... empty. Actually, kinda makes you sound like a dick, now that I think about it." She went to the door, banging on it loudly. "Seth, open the door." Her eyes shot back at Guillermo, rolling promptly. "But while we're on the quote on quote 'realistic' factors of our relationship- SETH IF YOU DON'T OPEN THIS FUCKING DOOR, I SWEAR TO GOD!- lets take a quick peek, hrm?"

Rubbing her chin, mocking a quizzical tone, Rose put on a logical face. "Let's see here, we started out... oh yeah. You letting me, a complete stranger, into your house and then letting me get naked not even five minutes later.... Realistic, I THINK SO!" He wasn't the only one fluent in sarcasm. "We then proceed a few weeks of epic boning. What a coinkidink that we're so sexually compatible, what living- SETH! NOW!- living right next door to each other. Cause, you know, that happens to people all the time. I then get SMASHED by a car, that quite frankly should have killed me, and not only came out basically unscathed save a seven inch scar on my torso where they had to cut me open to stop my insides from imploding, but woke up not even a few hours later. Kay, then we, two people who had never any real interest in monogamy or, really, feelings, start a romance that is, shall we say, is comparable to fucking drug addiction. By the way, when was the last time you fucking shaved?" Grabbing her jumpsuit off the door, she gave an empty, humorless, laugh. "You know, when I describe our relationship to people, the first word out of my damn mouth is definitely 'fucking realistic'. We just ooze it."

"Temper temper." Bruja smirked, titillated by the turn of events.

Banging the door hard, she continued her long winded rant. "You know, your right. How could I think you, MR. FUCKING REALISTIC MAN, could possibly believe me, whose only god damn redeeming quality in the shit fest that is my personality is honesty. Crazy right!? SETH!" Hearing the door click open, she burst through it, flinching at the sunshine that filled the garage. "Bout fucking time."

[GUILLERMO SALAS-ORTIZ]

"You know, for future reference, following an apology up with a 'but', generally makes the original apology a bit... empty. Actually, kinda makes you sound like a dick, now that I think about it."
His frown deepened and she went to the door, banging on it loudly.
"Seth, open the door."
She turned back to him momentarily, rolling her eyes.
"But while we're on the quote on quote 'realistic' factors of our relationship- SETH IF YOU DON'T OPEN THIS FUCKING DOOR, I SWEAR TO GOD!- lets take a quick peek, hrm?"
She mocked him by pretending to think very hard about the whole situation.
"Let's see here, we started out... oh yeah. You letting me, a complete stranger, into your house and then letting me get naked not even five minutes later.... Realistic, I THINK SO! We then proceed a few weeks of epic boning. What a coinkidink that we're so sexually compatible, what living- SETH! NOW!- living right next door to each other. Cause, you know, that happens to people all the time. I then get SMASHED by a car, that quite frankly should have killed me, and not only came out basically unscathed save a seven inch scar on my torso where they had to cut me open to stop my insides from imploding, but woke up not even a few hours later. Kay, then we, two people who had never any real interest in monogamy or, really, feelings, start a romance that is, shall we say, is comparable to fucking drug addiction. By the way, when was the last time you fucking shaved?"
She grabbed her jumpsuit and laughed cruelly. He wasn't sure what shaving had to do with it, but she seemed like she was on a roll with her sarcastic rant.
"You know, when I describe our relationship to people, the first word out of my damn mouth is definitely 'fucking realistic'. We just ooze it."
He shot her a glower and rolled his eyes.
Hard-headed bitch..
"You know, as unrealistic as those things are, they're still POSSIBLE. What you're claiming really isn't."
Banging the door hard, she continued.
"You know, your right. How could I think you, MR. FUCKING REALISTIC MAN, could possibly believe me, whose only god damn redeeming quality in the shit fest that is my personality is honesty. Crazy right!? SETH! Bout fucking time."
The door opened and Guillermo snarled.
God, she was irritating.
He loved her so much.
And he couldn't believe how much she aggravated him..

[SETH FOXWORTH]

The noises that came from the supply closet left very little to the imagination, and left Seth feeling quite good about himself. He was such an awesome friend! There they were, on the brink of disaster, and then swooped in Seth-Cupid-Awesome-Face, saving the day and shit. Ten points to Seth, allllllright.

But then, well, they were taking a while. Seth's stomach began to gurgle unpleasantly, and his mind went to the burgers the boys had left at the apartment. Damn, he should have eaten one. Looking over at Hiro, who Seth could already tell he was going to like, he nodded at the door. "So, looks like there going to be 'talking' for a while. You guys want to go get a couple burgers or something? We can go to Juicy's, get some loosies."

"Yeah man, lets do it." Hiro said, his tone excited, as Stefano looked around nervously. The shop was a ghost town, but Seth figured it would be bad for for him to abandon his post. "Dude, no worries, I'll get you one. No onions, extra pickle." The boys bumped fists, as Hiro and Seth vanished to Juicy's, grinning from ear to ear.

Everything was going to be how it was suppose to be. That was all Seth wanted, after all. He couldn't help but chuckle at the fact that his friends were so thick, that he had to orchestrate this, but oh well. The fact was they obviously couldn't be away from each other. Seth was like a less annoying Doctor Phil.

Returning with the burgers, he heard a very determined knocking coming from the closet. Oh, hey, they must be done. Grinning widely, with his crooked grin, Seth went and unlocked the door, missing their disgruntled faces. "About time, damn. You two think the apocalypse happen out here or something. Tryin to... hehe.. repopulate?"

Hiro came in with the asssist. "Bow chicka chicka bow chicka chicka BOW WOW!" Seth laughed brusquely, completely amused.

He felt Rose's eyes fall on his burger, which he offered genially. "Went to Juicy's. Wanna bite?"

Yes. Everything was perfect again.