Book 1: Lost In Translation (Another Reason To Cry) (Izzy Stradlin FanFic)

Ch. 11: Lost In Bad Timing

I pulled up to the posh house that was nestled into the nook of one of L.A.'s tallest mountains, and watched as Melody's eyes grew wide at the sight of it. With a perfect view of the coast as well as the City of Angels, the house looked even better than the one her mother owned.

"Yours?" She mouthed, pointing in disbelief at the mansion as I pulled into the driveway.

I nodded slightly, amused by her reaction. I didn't mention that this was only my house in Cali, and that I had a few more scattered across the better parts of the U.S. After all, I wanted to impress her, not repulse her by coming off as a complete and total douche.

She continued to gawk at the building, still having a hard time believing that it was actually mine. I smiled triumphantly to myself as I tugged the keys from the ignition and put them into my pocket. It seemed as though I wouldn't have to bring up my other houses any time soon. This house alone seemed to be more than enough to astound her.

I began to wonder if maybe it was a good thing that Melody's mom had been such a bitch to me and had just assumed that I'd lived in a cardboard box under a bridge somewhere. They both probably figured that I was in some lame, nobody band that had yet to actually hit it big. They obviously had no clue that I was in one of the biggest bands on the planet right now.

Surprisingly, that was fine by me. Unlike other girls that I'd met while being Izzy Stradlin, Melody was insterested in me as a person. She was interested in Jeffrey Dean Isbell.

"Are you ready to step inside?" I asked her warmly.

Her mouth still slightly open, she nodded slowly and stepped out of the car. I chuckled lightly to myself before following her out of the car and up the driveway to my front door.

Melody lingered close behind me as I unlocked the door, but I gently pushed her in front of me so that she could enter first. Without missing a beat, the spunky redhead stepped into the house as if she owned the place herself. I followed close behind, watching her reactions with pure delight.

My house, much like hers, was huge and oozed with marble and class. Today, however, my house looked like a pigsty. Beer cans and liquor bottles littered the floor. There was some women's lingerie scattered about as well as some broken-off  guitar parts. I also noticed a syringe on the floor by my foot, which I quickly kicked off to the side and prayed that Melody hadn't seen it.

"Sorry it's a little messy," I replied sheepishly once I had caught her eye, my mind still racing. I couldn't remember if I had thrown a party recently or not. Hadn't I been too focused on Melody to throw parties lately? If so, why was my house a giant mess?

She smiled and shook her head. I gave her a weak smile when I saw the warmth in her eyes and instantly knew that she was not there to judge me.

"I really don't know why it's such a disaster in here...I thought my housekeeper had cleaned it up..." I took in the room, which had looked like a tornado had blasted through it.

"She did."

I jumped into the air and my eyes flew wildly towards the hallway to my right where the voice had come from. Puzzled as to why I was so jumpy, Melody followed my gaze and gasped when she saw Duff standing in the hallway.

"Duff, what the hell? Why are you here?" I demanded. This was bad. Really bad.

Although Melody had let me meet her parents and see her house, I was not ready to let her meet my bandmates. She could see my house all she wanted. Hell, I'd even give her a key so she could visit whenever she liked, but she could not meet the band. Not yet, anyway. Not only were they rambunctious as hell, but I didn't want any of them finding out about her and teasing me for being so hung up on a girl. Not to mention, Axl had successfully stolen nearly all of my ex girlfriends, and I was worried that he would try to work his magic on Melody. I didn't want him anywhere near her.