Amy nodded towards the hallway, "Stuart's room is the last on the left."
Axl blinked, "The last? As in more than one?"
"Oh yeah, a little while after you left um, they built the other room so Stuart and I didn't have to share a room anymore." Axl nodded, looking down. He sent nervous looks Slash's way, who nodded encouragingly, massaging his shoulder. Axl took a deep breath before he turned, heading off down the hallway.
Amy had made her way to the kitchen, poking her head around the corner to nod at Slash, "Oh, Slash you can go ahead and make yourself at home." Slash smiled politely, sitting down crisscross applesauce at a chair. He wanted to relax, but his gaze kept drifting back to the hallway Axl had disappeared down. Slash tried to swallow the nervous lump in his throat.
Slash realized Amy had sat down on the end of the couch near him, giving him a thoughtful look. "You really love him, don't you."
Slash blinked in surprise to hear that question. She had an amused smile, strikingly similar to her brother's, "It's okay, I don't mind. I'm just impressed that any person's managed to be around my brother, let alone go out with him," she had a soft look, "...I'm just happy to know that somebody's been looking after him.... He doesn't stay outta trouble easily as I'm sure you've noticed... I just thought for sure when he ran off, he'd end up stuck on his own or dead in an alleyway...." Amy had a deep sigh, "It makes me feel a little better to know someone's been taking care of him."
Slash had a flustered, sweet smile that made Amy grin. "You don't talk much do you."
Slash laughed, shaking his head, "Its better if I don't have to."
Amy nodded, entertained, "I guess I can understand that."
"..You're a lot like him y'know."
Amy raised her eyebrows, "Am I?" Slash nodded. "How so?"
Slash shrugged, "You're observant, you tell it like you see it...."
Amy guessed what he was thinking but not saying, "And I'm talkative?"
Slash laughed, "Yeah... He usually does the talking for me.. I couldn't get a word in if I tried.."
Her eyes softened, "Do you love him?"
Slash looked down, unsure what to say. "...I don't know...." he lied.
Well, it wasn't exactly a lie, he didn't know the answer to her question. But sometimes he felt like he knew the answer, other times he was confused again. Sometimes he was so certain he knew the answer it scared him because he never imagined he could feel such strong emotions for a person.
He felt such a strong need to protect Axl, so strong sometimes he missed him when he was actually right next to him, just sleeping. He was never a nervous person at all before Axl came along, like he couldn't remember being worried about anything ever before him. But he always felt so worried for him, like if anything hurt Axl even the tiniest amount, he felt a wave of emotion sweep over him with the need to keep him safe. All he wanted was for Axl to be happy, to just be around him, to keep him close.
But he didn't know if that was love.
But sometimes, just holding him close, kissing him, or even just talking with him, he felt so strongly for him, he felt like if love was anything other than that, he didn't want to fall in love.
But Slash didn't really want to say any of that upright to Axl's sister. He wasn't sure if he would say it to anyone, except Axl. Even then, he didn't think he should. He wanted to tell him what was on his mind, but he didn't want to upset Axl. He didn't know how he might react, he might be happy, he might freak out, he just didn't know.
But he did know, that the only situation he could imagine telling Axl how he felt, was if he was certain Axl felt the same way. Or if he might be thinking so, just too scared to accept it. Axl gets stuck in his own head a lot, if he felt that way, he might not even know it because he's just so in denial. Slash didn't know how he would react in that situation. He might listen to him, or it might make him even more upset. He just didn't know.
But Slash had a lot of time to think about it, and that's okay. He still had plenty of time he could figure out how he felt. And he knew he wanted to be around Axl, and when he was with him, he just makes all the confusion go away. He doesn't think about any of it, he can't. All he can think about is Axl.
Amy nodded shortly, a look in her eyes that told Slash that she somewhat understood.
Stuart flipped the page of the magazine, studying the barely dressed women covering the pages. He suddenly heard a knock on the door and he scrambled to shove the dirty magazine into his pillowcase. "Come in," he said, flopping back onto his bed again to try and look casual.
But then he saw the last face he expected to see, someone he hadn't seen in so long since he was so young that some people wouldn't even recognize them, a person who, like himself, had changed in appearance in time that no nine-year-old would recognize them six years later. But Stuart knew who it was the second he saw the hand open the door with thick, silver biker rings on each finger.
"W-William?" He stuttered in surprise.
Axl blinked, almost as surprised as he was, "Holy shit your voice got deep.." he muttered.
Stuart laughed, a wide smile spreading across his face to hear his brother's same sense of humor, "Your's's deeper.." he added, his voice still quiet in shock.
Axl grinned, "Well I still remember a brother who was still all tiny and short with a squeaky voice."
Stuart smirked, "Funny I remember a brother like that too."
Axl stepped into the room, glancing around, and Stuart guessed he must be trying to figure out what was here before the renovation. Axl's gaze returned back to his brother, "Oh my shit you're so tall," he breathed, examining his brother's figure. "Stand up lemme see."
Stuart rose to his feet and his brother studied him. Standing up, Stuart could notice that his eye level was just above his brother's, and he noticed how Axl looked considerably skinnier than he was. But since he was about ten, Stuart had also been a bigger-set kid, taller than other kids his age and with a generally larger build than some of his classmates. "You.." Axl started, biting his tongue, "Look just like Dad," he smiled weakly, resting his hand on Stuart's shoulder.
Stuart rested back down on his bed, unsure of how to take Axl's comment.
Axl seemed to shake it off quickly like he were changing the subject and he had an amused grin on his face, "So what were you doin just layin there before I walked in?"
Stuart felt flushed with embarrassment, "Uh..."
Axl snickered, "Is the magazine in your pillowcase or under the mattress?"
Stuart looked down and pulled the magazine out from his pillow. ".........Last month's issue's under the mattress though..."
Axl sat down on the bed next to him and looked over his shoulder to examine the magazine, "Not bad," he noted, "I myself was always more into Penthouse."
Stuart laughed, "I know.... I took a box of your magazines you had stashed when you left.."
Axl raised his eyebrows with amusement, "Really? Do you still have my one of Madonna?"
Stuart nodded, "I didn't even open the box until I was thirteen but she was at the top of the stack..... God she's hot."
Axl chuckled, "Yeah she is. That makes me feel better though to know my nine-year-old brother at the time wasn't reading them."
Stuart shook his head, smiling, "The first time I picked up the magazine I giggled too much and immediately closed it at first glimpse."
Axl's eyes sparkled with entertainment, his gaze softening, "I missed you, kid."
"...I missed you a lot too.... I talk about you all the time to my friends."
Axl nodded, "Amy told me."
"You look even cooler than I remember."
Axl snorted with laughter, "I'm pretty sure I look the same."
Stuart smiled, "Well, I mean, I was nine when you left. After a certain amount of time of a person being gone you start to forget what they look like, n' your mind just kinda, rebuilds your image of them... It was to the point I was starting to doubt if you had red hair or if you had any piercings or tattoos."
Axl nodded, "Yeah, I still think of you as a little kid... And by the way I've gotten four piercings and five tattoos. But I only had two piercings and two tattoos when I left."
"REALLY!? THAT'S SO RAD I WANNA SEE!"
Axl tucked his hair behind his ears to expose his earrings and he rolled his t-shirt sleeves up his shoulders to show his tattoos.
Stuart nodded in awe, "Sick," He looked him up and down, "I thought you had four piercings, I only see three?"
"Oh uh, yeah you can't see the fourth one and it's healed so I can't even put in the ring anymore."
"Where is it? Can only girls see it?" He asked in a teasing voice.
Axl laughed, "No you could see it but it's not there anymore."
"So where was it?"
"It was uh, a nipple ring."
Stuart gasped, "No way! That's so cool!"
"Think so?"
"Totally! I would get one too if I were built like you or y'know, wasn't afraid of how much that must've hurt."
Axl grinned, "Oh it hurt like fuck getting it."
"Why'd you get rid of it?"
"Uh this chick she uh, wasn't playing nice...."
"Wow."
"Almost lost a nipple that day."
"You're so awesome."
Axl laughed, flipping his hair, "I know, darling."
"So what's it like in California?"
"Really really hot."
"Do you guys just like, burst to flames out there?"
Axl laughed, "Yeah I live in an eternal state of sunburn. But it's nice out there. Definitely beats Indiana."
Stuart laughed too, "Well sure, Ohio beats Indiana."
"Don't be absurd. Ohio sucks balls."
"Yeah that's true though. What're you doing out there? Do you and Izzy have your band like you always wanted?"
"Mhm. We're Guns N' Roses."
"SHIT THAT'S SO COOL!"
"Stuart, language!"
"Sorry sorry that's just such a fucking sick name!"
"Language!"
"Sorry.."
Axl laughed, "I'm just kidding you can swear all you want I don't care."
"I really did miss you so much."