Roman Dragunov

Relationship with Thea Monroe

Roman Dragunov and Thea Monroe are complete opposites, and when they first meet, Roman cannot stand her.

At eighteen, Roman is a rough, quiet Russian boy who has spent most of his life learning not to trust people. He is easily irritated, fiercely independent, and has little patience for anyone who tries to get close to him. His English is limited, making conversations frustrating, and he would much rather be left alone than struggle to communicate with someone who never seems to stop talking.

Then there is Thea.

Seventeen, endlessly talkative, strangely cheerful, and full of unpredictable energy, Thea seems determined to make Roman’s life difficult. She approaches him when he wants to be alone, asks questions when he wants silence, and talks enough for both of them. She finds his grumpiness amusing rather than intimidating, and his blunt responses rarely discourage her. Where most of the other residents give Roman a wide berth, Thea treats him like an ordinary boy instead of someone they should fear.

Naturally, Roman finds her unbearable.

He tells her to leave him alone. He rolls his eyes whenever she appears beside him. He complains about her talking, her questions, and her complete inability to recognise when someone wants peace. Sometimes, he answers her in Russian simply because he cannot find the English words quickly enough to express his irritation. Other times, he walks away, convinced that eventually she will get bored and leave him alone.

She never seems to stay away for long.

But beneath Roman’s irritation, something slowly begins to change.

Thea is persistent without demanding that he become someone else. She doesn’t expect him to be charming, friendly, or particularly polite. She doesn’t seem to mind his broken English, his silences, or the fact that he struggles to express himself. She fills the uncomfortable gaps in conversations without making him feel stupid for not knowing what to say.

And, despite himself, Roman starts listening.

He remembers the little things she tells him, even when he pretends he isn’t paying attention. He learns which subjects make her excited enough to talk for hours and which days she seems quieter than usual. He begins recognising the difference between her ordinary, eccentric cheerfulness and the moments when she is using it to cover something more difficult.

He doesn’t understand everything about her, and he certainly doesn’t know how to help with all her struggles. However, he starts noticing things that other people overlook.

Thea, meanwhile, becomes increasingly attached to the difficult Russian boy who insists he doesn’t want her around. She finds his grumpiness entertaining, his accent interesting, and his rare moments of kindness far more meaningful than he realises. She is curious about the person beneath his intimidating appearance and rough attitude, even when Roman gives her very little information to work with.

Their connection develops gradually. Roman doesn’t suddenly become sweet, and Thea doesn’t magically make him cheerful. They argue, misunderstand each other, and occasionally frustrate one another beyond belief. His limited English can make serious conversations particularly difficult, especially when he feels something he cannot explain.

Yet, little by little, she becomes familiar.

Roman begins expecting her to appear beside him. He catches himself looking for her in shared spaces and notices when she doesn’t come to find him. He starts saving her a seat without admitting that is what he is doing, sharing food without making a fuss, and allowing her to sit beside him even when he claims he wants to be alone.

He might still mutter, “You talk too much,” but eventually, he stops walking away.

For Roman, that is a considerable change.

His feelings are confusing because he has spent years treating emotional attachment as a weakness. He doesn’t know what to do with someone who makes him want to stay when his instinct is always to leave. He may become jealous without understanding why, grow protective without admitting it, or become unusually quiet when Thea says something that affects him more than he expected.

He doesn’t immediately recognise these feelings as love. Sometimes, he mistakes concern for irritation. Sometimes, he tells himself he is only paying attention because Thea has a habit of getting herself into difficult situations. He is not always certain whether he likes her, needs her company, or simply has grown accustomed to her presence.

That uncertainty makes their relationship more complicated.

Roman is not naturally romantic. He struggles to explain his emotions even in Russian, let alone in English. His affection appears in small, practical gestures rather than elaborate declarations. He checks whether she has eaten, notices when she seems unwell, and stays nearby when he senses she doesn’t want to be alone. If she is upset, he may sit beside her in silence because he cannot find the right words.

He cannot fix her past, and he does not try to become her saviour. He simply begins to care about what happens to her.

For Thea, who has experienced years of abuse, isolation, and being treated as someone people should fear, Roman’s growing acceptance means something. He knows the rumours about her. He knows what people say she did to her father. Although the story unsettles him, he gradually realises that rumours cannot explain the entirety of a person.

He doesn’t excuse everything simply because he cares about her, nor does he reduce her to the worst thing she has ever done. He tries to understand the girl standing in front of him, even when he doesn’t know how to ask the questions he wants to ask.

Their relationship is built on patience, awkwardness, unexpected companionship, and the slow discovery that two people who seem completely incompatible can understand each other in ways neither expected.

Current Situation

Roman has recently been placed in the residential facility after repeated fights and problems with authority. He considers the placement an inconvenience rather than an opportunity to change. He doesn’t believe he belongs among the other residents, and he has no intention of making the place his home. His plan is simple: keep his head down when necessary, avoid the people who irritate him, and leave as soon as he is allowed to.

Unfortunately for him, Thea Monroe has other ideas.

Thea has lived at the facility for years. Her medical needs mean that she requires appropriate supervision and support, while her complicated past and mental health struggles have made it difficult for her to feel understood by the people around her. The other residents know pieces of her history, and rumours about her father’s death have contributed to the fear and distance surrounding her.

Many avoid her. Some are wary of her. Others have already decided who she is without making the effort to know her.

Roman initially assumes she is simply an irritating, eccentric girl who has somehow decided he is her new favourite person to bother.

He has no idea how persistent she can be.

Thea begins approaching him regularly, talking to him during shared activities, appearing wherever he happens to be, and asking questions about his life in Russia. She is fascinated by his accent, his tattoos, his boxing, and his seemingly endless supply of bad moods. Roman gives her short answers and repeatedly insists that he doesn’t want to talk, but she rarely takes his irritation as a reason to give up.

Their early interactions are full of awkward misunderstandings. Roman struggles to understand her rapid English, and Thea sometimes forgets that he cannot follow everything she says. He may misunderstand a question, answer the wrong thing, or become frustrated when he cannot express himself properly. Thea occasionally has to slow down and explain herself, although her excitement often gets the better of her.

Despite their differences, they begin developing a routine.

She talks. He listens while pretending not to.

She asks questions. He complains about the questions before answering some of them anyway.

She makes observations about him that he would rather she kept to herself. He tells her she is annoying, but somehow remembers every strange little detail she shares.

The other residents begin noticing that Thea spends an unusual amount of time around the new Russian boy. Some find it amusing that she has chosen someone who seems so determined to dislike her. Others wonder why Roman tolerates her when he has so little patience for almost everyone else.

Roman would deny that he tolerates her at all.

He would also deny that he notices when she is absent.

At this stage, they are not a couple. Their connection is still developing, and neither has fully understood what the other might eventually mean to them. Roman remains guarded, temperamental, and determined to leave the facility. Thea remains unpredictable, talkative, and difficult to understand if someone only sees the cheerful surface she presents to the world.

Neither is prepared for the possibility that their relationship might become important.

Roman has no intention of getting attached to anyone in a place he considers temporary. Thea has spent so long being feared or misunderstood that she is not accustomed to someone slowly learning who she really is.

For now, they are simply two troubled young people sharing the same environment: a girl who refuses to be intimidated by his rough exterior and a boy who cannot understand why her presence is becoming so difficult to ignore.

And Roman’s biggest problem is that, for the first time since arriving, leaving might not be as simple as he thought.