Book 1: You Could Be Mine (Izzy Stradlin FanFic)

Ch. 28: I'm Real

I woke up on the couch with a wet wash cloth on my forehead. It took me a moment to realize what was going on. I remembered seeing Izzy at my door and I shot up, whipping my head towards the door. I sprinted to it and swung it open.

No one. No one was there.

Maybe I dreamt it? I thought to myself. But then how did this towel get on my head?

Maybe I had been half asleep and just forgot that I crawled to the couch? My heart sank and I closed the door. I leaned my back against it and began fiddling with the wet towel. Why did my mind have to play tricks on me like that?

I heard a clatter coming from the kitchen and I leapt in the air.

"Saul?" I called out. "Saul, stop messing around."

I padded to the kitchen and saw Saul sitting by a pair of legs. I let my eyes follow the legs until my blue eyes were met with dark ones staring back at me. I leaned against the door frame for support and watched as the man before me began cracking eggs and dropping them into a bowl.

"Hey," he said. His voice was music to my ears.

"Hey," my voice sounded so weak. I coughed to clear my throat. "What're you doing?"

He grinned. "Making scrambled eggs. You want some?"

I furrowed my eye brows at him. This was strange. A few years back, he had been sweet but very introverted. He had been moody a lot too. Now that I got a good look at him, I could see that he also wasn't as thin and pale as he used to be. Any previous problems he'd had with his complexion were now gone and his hair seemed much cleaner.

"Sure," I said slowly.

"Sweet," he said. "Go sit down. I'll call you when it's ready."

I ignored his words and instead, I walked over to him. He began to beat the eggs with a fork to scramble them, but paused when I cupped his face with my hand. He turned slightly to look at me and I caressed his cheek with my fingers.

"Is it really you?" I breathed.

He nodded gently. I shook my head, too afraid to believe it. I didn't want to wake up and have this be a dream. He grabbed my arm with his hand and squeezed softly.

"I'm here," he whispered. "I'm real."

My vision of him grew blurry as tears welled up in my eyes. I sank into him, wrapping my arms around his waist and burying my face into his chest.

"I've missed you," I gasped in between sobs. "I've missed everybody."