Disclaimer: I do not own anything. This is a work of complete fiction. As for the characters mentioned, this story does not depict their own personal feelings, thoughts, or ideas. Each character belongs to their rightful owners; themselves and the WWE

Note: Hello everyone! This is the anticipated sequel to Casualty of Love. It is titled Gravity Of Love and I sincerely hope that you enjoy it! Also, today is a very important/special day to me. It's my 23rd birthday! So, as my birthday gift, I give you chapter 1! Enjoy loves! -JJ

A New Beginning

Roman's eyes squeezed tighter together before they slowly opened, taking in the early morning light. He groaned, rolling to his side and yanking the covers over his head. He didn't want to get up. He heard his phone alarm in the front room of his apartment and he growled in frustration, throwing the blankets back and getting up. He looked around his small one bedroom apartment as he walked through it, thinking it wasn't exactly how it had looked on the website, then again, what apartment ever did.

He couldn't complain: it was decent, small but tastefully done. And the price was fairly cheap compared to the amenities that came with it. All his utilities were included in his rent with free cable and Internet and he even got his own parking space in an underground garage. Not to mention the gym, pool, and lounge house filled with pool tables and sofas and a snack bar. It wasn't home, but it would do. It had to do.

He grabbed for his phone on top of the television, turning the alarm off and groaning. He looked at the time before tossing his phone on the couch and walking back into his room to get dressed. He had to get ready to go into his office and set things up. He'd been there for a month but they hadn't had a spot for him until one of the other professor retired.

He tugged on the clothes he'd laid out the night before, a pair of straight legged black jeans, a black tank top with a white long sleeved button up, which he left completely open. He wasn't completely sure on the tattoo policy at his new university, sure that he could ask as soon as he got there.

He didn't take much time after tugging on some socks and a pair of sneakers to grab his box of things and head to the door. After checking to make sure he had his keys he locked the door and walked out.

"Oi Fella!"

Roman stopped, turning his head to meet the smiling face of his neighbor. "Hello Shea," he answered, watching as the tall Irish man walked over, his flaming red hair half covered by his hat. "No work today?"

The Irishman shook his head, smiling a wide toothy grin. "Not today. Where ye off to so early?" he asked, looking down at the box in Roman's hands. He stood there, almost as tall as Roman, his body a little broader but his skin so fair. His mustache ran down to his beard before sliding up the line of his jaw to connect with his sideburns, also a bright red.

"I have to set my office up at the University. They finally have an office open," Roman explained, looking down into his box before looking back up to green eyes. "You gonna be home later? The game's gonna be on tonight if your up for some pizza."

Shea took a moment to think, before he smiled and nodded. "Yeah, but I'll come to yer place. I have a friend coming by," he said with a growing smile, one eye brow rising. "Say 'bout seven?"

Roman shook his head, trying to contain his chuckle. "Seven's fine. I'll see you later." He heard Shea's quick goodbye before he started down the hall way to his SUV, smiling. He liked his neighbor a lot. He'd met him the day he moved in, two beautiful ladies leaving the apartment smiling brightly. It didn't take long for them to hit it off and a close friendship sparked between them.

His real name was Stephen but because of being from Ireland, Roman always wanted to call him Sheamus but settled on Shea instead. The Irishman didn't seem to mind. He had learned that Shea was a bit of a ladies man, always with a new girl every night or so and with the walls so thin, he could hear them if he decided to leave the television off. They'd spent at least one night a week at one place or the other watching either soccer or football and chatting.

Roman had found it easy to open up to Shea, his personality a good mix between Seth's friendliness and gentle nature and Dean's rugged toughness. He couldn't say he didn't like it, because it gave him a little taste of home without actually calling.

He sighed as he walked down the stairs, thinking of home. He hadn't heard from anyone other than his parents in that month. He'd changed his number and refused to give it to anyone but them and he'd made his mother promise not to give it to Seth or Dean, knowing that they would give it to Cody.

As much as it had hurt completely cutting the other man out, he couldn't say he regretted it. He'd told Cody before that he was leaving and starting over and for him to fully do that he had to start fresh. He sighed again, finding his SUV and holding his box in one hand as he dug for his keys and unlocked it. He pushed the box into the back hatch and shut everything before he got into the driver's seat and started it up.

He inhaled deeply, looking at the passenger seat. He could still see Cody sitting there, the last words that had passed between them, the final touch of their hands. He jerked his gaze away, telling himself that it was over. This was what he'd wanted. He turned to watch as he backed out and started away, forcing himself to remember that he was going to meet his new office mate and co-workers.

Roman was frustrated by the time he'd found his office. He'd gotten lost on the campus for over an hour attempting to find the right wing and the right floor. He bumped open the already ajar door, growling as he slammed his box down on the empty desk.

"Well, they didn't tell me you were so aggressive."

Roman's eyes widened as he turned to the right and saw the ebony skinned man sitting in at the desk next to his. "I'm sorry," he answered, standing up straight and looking over the smiling face, taking in the various peircings, two in the other man's left eye brow, two small studs in the right side of his nose, his labret, not to mention both of his conches, and two silver hoops in each lobe. "You can have those here?"

The man only smiled, running a hand over his cornrows "Yeah, you hiding something? Cuz it's pretty damn hot to be wearing a long sleeved shirt," he commented, chuckling when Roman shrugged off the shirt, showing his intricate tribal sleeve. "Damn man, look at that, how many hours you spend in the chair for that?"

Roman smirked. "More than I want to admit to. "Roman Reigns by the way. I just transferred from UWF in Pensacola," he introduced, offering his hand. He smiled when the other man stood and took it, giving him a firm but friendly handshake.

"Ron Killings, nice to meet ya. I hope you're better than my last one. Spent ten years in here almost with that asshole," he explained, chuckling. "So, if you don't mind, why did you leave Florida for Iowa? You do realize that it's shitty here in the winter with all the snow and stuff."

"Oh, I have an idea. One of my friends down there has family that lives in Davenport, he used to visit every few Christmas's and ended up getting stuck because of the weather a couple times," Roman explained smiling. He already felt comfortable with his new office mate. It was nice. "I needed a change of pace. I've lived there my entire life."

Ron shrugged, pursing his lips together. "I can understand that, but man, all that sun for fields. I think you made a mistake," he laughed, smiling wide. "But naw, welcome to UI. So you're the new philosophy professor. Some of the guys are gonna love to pick your brain."

Roman stood there, almost uncertain about that idea of the others questioning him. He smiled back, carrying on light conversation with Ron as he unpacked his things and started setting them up. He paused when he reached the middle of the box, his hands wrapping around the black metal frame.

"You okay?" Ron asked, standing up from his desk and walking over. He looked down at the photo, looking back up into Roman's somber face. He looked back down at the frame, taking in the smiling faces of Roman and Cody. He could see the beach in the background, both shirtless and wearing board shorts. "A friend back in Florida?"

Roman shook his head, sighing. "He's my ex," he murmured, taking the photo out and laying it facedown on his desk so he could continue. He could feel Ron holding back building questions. He turned, seeing the slight surprise in Ron's face. "Do you have a problem?"

Ron held his hands up in defense. "Nope, I don't judge. You guys just look so happy, that's all. It's weird to hear about people breaking up when they look that happy and you sound so depressed over it," he explained, cocking his head to the side.

Roman nodded, looking back down into his box. "It's a long story. You probably have better things to do than listen to me," he answered, pulling out a few more books. He heard the chuckle next to him. He looked up ready to say something only to see that Ron was sitting in his chair, leaning back with one ankle on the opposite knee.

"Boy, I got all day. My wife's on a warpath over our oldest son bombing his last math test. I got all day," he laughed, resting his hands behind his head. "I don't mind. We're going to be spending a lot of time here, might as well get to know each other a bit. I'm sure you'll know more about me than you want to by the end of the school year anyway."

Roman nodded, smiling slightly. Yeah, he'd grown pretty close to Brad over the years too, long before any kind of real romantic interest had started. He took a deep breath, letting it out before he started his story of how him and Cody were together and the accident. He abridged the story easily, leaving out the more personal parts of him and Cody but still showing that his love hadn't changed. "So after everything, I thought it would be better to just leave. I've had the offer to come up here for a while anyway," he finished, heart pounding to let someone else into his world.

Ron sat there in more than a little shock. "Man, that's pretty shitty," he answered, sitting up and resting his hands on his legs. "You called home to see how he's doing or anything?"

Roman shook his head. "I changed my number so he couldn't. None of my friends have it, just my parents because they're the only ones that won't give it out. It sounds callous, I know but it's hard enough not to think about him, all he'd have to do is call me up and ask me to come home and I'd been on the next plane out."

Ron gave a soft, sympathetic smile. "Love's vicious isn't it?"

Roman only nodded, returning to his task of unpacking, his and Ron's conversation returning to more lighthearted topics like the weather and where Ron was from. He'd learned that Ron had moved out to Iowa from North Carolina to help his brother out when his wife had left him and had met his current wife and had been stuck ever since. He learned that Ron had two sons, aged seventeen and fourteen and two girls, one twelve and one eight, two Rottweilers; sisters named Cocoa and Sassy, both "Giant pansy asses" in Ron's words and then a cat named Krush that they'd found near dead on the highway two summers before that his youngest daughter had fallen in love with and nursed back to health.

He smiled, thinking that him and Ron would really turn out to be good friends. They clicked well and already they were joking around and throwing little jabs at the other, mostly about Roman's apparent neatness and Ron's more sloppy approach at decorating and desk organization.

"Well, it's good to see that you're getting along so well," a woman said, her smile bright as she poked her head into the office. "You must be the new guy." Her smiled brightened as she stepped in, showing her pencil skirt and blue blouse, a pair of wedge heels on her feet. She was nicely tanned, her hair raven and curled lightly, it bouncing with each step she took. Her lips were painted a bright red, only lightening her entire face up. "I'm Melina Perez, I teach women's literature in the C wing. I'm sure I'll see you a lot down there."

"Roman Reigns," Roman answered, nodding and shaking her hand. He could tell already that she was a feisty one, one that didn't take shit off anybody but was truly sweet and easy going.

"Now, Roman, I need to warn you, Ron here likes to try and steal significant others. Be careful at parties and functions with alcohol," she laughed, earning a shocked look from the skinned man. "Your girlfriend wouldn't be safe."

"Now, before you believe her, let me explain what happened. I know her fiancée John. We were out drinking one night, came back to his place and I passed out on the floor in his living room. I don't know how but the next morning Melina woke us up and we were smashed up against each other. It wasn't anything serious," Ron explained, hurrying to give an explanation.

"Uh-huh," Melina teased some more, crossing her arms over her supple breasts and cocking her hip to one side. "Yeah, I believe you."

Roman tried to hold back the laughter, remembering too many times that him and Seth had ended up snuggled up together in a bed after a night of heavy drinking. "It's okay, I've had similar happen with one of my best friends back home," he voiced, his smile starting to fade as he thought of Seth and Dean and how much he missed them. He'd gotten a couple emails from Seth in the last month but it just wasn't the same as hearing his voice.

"Oh, honey, did I say something wrong? I was only teasing Ron," Melina said, her playful tone dropping into concern. "We've been friends for years, this is just how we are." She reached out and rested a hand on Roman's tattooed arm.

"No, it's not you. Just thinking about some of my friends back in Florida is all," he answered, smiling as he looked up at her again. "I kinda miss them. Ya know?"

Melina smiled, nodding. "I understand. Some of my best girlfriends moved out to Arizona when I moved out here. We all had plans to go to Hollywood together when we were in high school."

Roman nodded, taking comfort in the woman's words. He looked over at Ron, finding a smile on his face as well. He knew he was going to enjoy Iowa; he'd already made three friends. As long as he didn't spent too much time thinking about Florida, he wouldn't be reminded of Seth or Dean, and as long as he didn't think about Cody at all, he'd make it just fine.

Grey eyes were dropping as Roman continued to stare at the computer screen. He was filling out his course work schedule and working on some lecture notes, ready for the school year to begin that next month. He figured the sooner his classes started, the less time he'd have to think about anything other than teaching. It was going to be his outlet. He paused, sitting up straight on the couch and rubbed his face, feeling a couple of his vertebrae crack.

He looked at the corner of his screen, finding that he'd been at this for the better part of two hours. Groaning, he stood, dropping his hands from his tired face as he paced around the room a couple times, trying to wake up so he could finish.

It wasn't late in the night, only around nine, but he felt like he'd been up all night working. He shoved his hands into the pockets of his gym shorts, wondering if it would be too late to run next door and ask Shea for some company. He nodded, deciding that a little break wouldn't be too bad.

Roman didn't take long to pull on a t-shirt and a pair of flip flops before he walked out of his apartment, keys safely in his pocket, and walked just next door to Shea's and knocked. He only had to wait a moment before the door was opened. "Hey Shea, you busy?" he asked, smiling at that slightly messy hair of the other man. "Or am I interrupting?"

Shea shook his head, yawning widely. "Naw, just fell asleep on me couch is all," he murmured, his Irish accent even thicker as it laced with sleep. "What time is it?" He led Roman in, showing his apartment, the walls a nice light blue color with dark hardwood floors. They walked through the small kitchenette into Shea's living room.

Roman could see where Shea had fallen asleep on the couch, a blanket left in a heap at the foot. "I figured you'd have someone to keep you up tonight," he joked, sitting across from the couch in the matching blue suede recliner. He watched Shea stretch upwards, his shirt lifting just enough to show a small sliver of pearly white skin. He shook his head, wondering how someone could stay so fair skinned.

"Not tonight. Too much to do tomorrow," Shea answered, walking back into the kitchen and getting into the fridge. He grabbed two bottles before walking back in and flopping down on his couch. He tossed one of the clear bottles to Roman. "Still no visitors to your place either."

Roman shook his head, cracking open the bottled water and taking a drink. "Not much time to worry about stuff like that," he answered, shrugging. Honestly, he wasn't even thinking about trying to get into the dating scene. He still had a long way to go before he was over Cody. "What do you even do anyway Shea? It's been two months since I moved and I see women come here all the time."

Shea smiled, downing half of his bottle of water before scratching the top of his head. "I'm a director of a daycare," he answered, looking up. "What can I say, the ladies love a man who likes kids." He saw the look of shock on Roman's face and couldn't help but laugh a little harder.

"You're kidding me?" Roman asked, completely serious. Out of every profession in the world, he would have never thought that Shea worked with kids. Not to mention how young most of the women he brought home really looked.

"Not all of them are mums, some are just friends looking for a good time," Shea said, only laughing harder at the way Roman's eyes seemed to widen even further. He bit his lower lip, enjoying the shock.

Roman shook his head, completely stunned. He looked down at his hands around the water bottle, wondering what he should say next. He didn't feel awkward, just a little out of his element.

"Ye know, yer pretty uptight lately. I know a couple girls that could take care of that for ye," Shea teased, watching as Roman hid his face behind one hand as the other man let out a chuckle. "Just say the word."

"No, I'm okay, thanks though," Roman answered, shaking his head as his hand dropped back down to his lap. "I'm not looking for anything like that right now."

"I do know a few men," Shea pushed out, wondering if Roman would take the bait. He smiled when Roman's eyes looked right into his. "I've seen the pictures on yer walls Roman. I know ye didn't just decide to move up here for nothing." He let out a low breath. "I won't ask too many questions but ye can't let it consume ye. What's 'is name?"

Roman sighed, leaning back in the chair, thinking over the conversation him and Shea were going to have. "Cody," he finally answered after taking a drink from his bottle. "Look, I appreciate what you're trying to do here, but I'm not ready for all that."

Shea shrugged. "I have someone in mind that ye'll like, at least give it a try," he encouraged, tipping his head to the side, widening his eyes as he looked over the other man's face. "If it doesn't work, I won't say anything else, ever. What do ye have to lose?"

Roman chuckled, nodding. It was true, he didn't have anything to lose. "No kids right?" he asked, not against the idea of trying something with someone with kids but not wanting to put himself in that kind of situation yet.

"Naw, no kids. I do know people without them," Shea answered, finishing his bottle of water and capping it, putting the empty bottle on his coffee table. "So, ye eat yet? I fell asleep a couple hours ago and I'm starving." He chuckled, Roman joining him.

Roman hummed as he sat back down at his computer, his head cleared and ready to get back to work. He'd spent more than enough time over at Shea's just shooting the breeze and joking around. They had decided on ordering a pizza, on Shea's dime this time around, only after arguing of the best toppings. It was playful of course.

He smiled as he opened up his internet and scurried around the net for just a few minutes before he decided to buckle down at get to work. His thoughts didn't leave just how comfortable Shea made him feel, it was really like he was home with Seth, just without the same kind of physical affection him and Seth had always shared.

Roman shrugged, pushing the other man from his mind as he opened his email. His heart stopped in his chest, a few new emails sitting there waiting for him to read. Grey eyes looked over the names, one more from Seth, one from Brad, and the very last one, the one sitting at the top of his box was from Cody himself. He swallowed, swiping his finger over the mouse pad, deciding that he needed to read the other two.

He skimmed the paragraphs from Seth, smiling at how he could hear Seth's voice ringing in his ears, some of the email playful and complete curious about his life, and part of it he scolding him for changing his number and not letting him know. How things were a bit different at home and how him and Dean missed him and wanted him to come visit. Roman finished it and clicked back to his inbox, clicking on the one from Brad.

He was a little curious as to why Brad would be emailing him, since he had given him his new number. Once he read the email, he knew. Brad had lost his number when he'd gone on a sudden, unexpected swim with a couple friends right into the ocean. He couldn't help but chuckle, the rest of the message just telling him that Brad missed him and that he'd gotten a new office mate, although this guy was quiet and not as much fun to talk to as him. Roman couldn't help but feel a little flattered. He was thankful that Brad didn't mention anything what had happened between them.

His fingers began to tremble when the cursor landed on Cody's email, his eyes narrowing at the text. He sighed, leaning back against his couch and dropping his hands to his sides. He wasn't sure if he even wanted to read what Cody had to say to him. He had left kind of abruptly but deep down he'd hoped that Cody would chase him, at least try to stop him. He shook his head, thinking that it was a stupid thought. Him and Cody weren't like they had been. Cody had changed and they only seemed to hurt the other. He'd left for those reasons.

He just stared at the name, his jaw tightening. He wanted to read it, but at the same time he didn't. He knew if it said anything about calling he would, and he'd only be shooting himself in the foot. He'd decided that night before he left that whatever happened between him and Cody was the end, that he was going to let it all go completely. He sighed, clicking on the box next to Cody's name and marking it as read. At that moment he didn't have the strength or willpower to delete it.

Roman groaned, shutting the lid of his laptop before he stood and walked over to the light and flipped it off. His good mood had been ruined and he knew he wouldn't be able to focus if he tried working on his lessons now and he really didn't want to have to go back and fix them. He walked into his bedroom, pulling off his shirt and pushing his jeans off before he crawled into his bed and pulled the covers over his shoulder. He'd try again tomorrow.

(A/N): Alright everyone, welcome to the first chapter of Gravity Of Love, the sequel to Casualty Of Love. If you haven't read Casualty of Love, there is a strong possibility that this story won't make sense. So with that said, I hope you guys like it. I know that I'm excited to get this going. I always enjoy your thoughts! Onwards and upwards loves! The Title of the story is Gravity Of Love by Enigma. Chapter titles is A New Beginning by Good Charlotte.

JacktheSinister_JaketheJust