Never Letting Go (Axl Rose)

Two

The next morning, Stuart woke up and examined the empty room with a frown on his face. It's going to take a lot to make it feel like home. But Stuart was sure he could do it. he crawled out of the bed and put on a pair of black jeans, followed by a chain and an anarchist shirt that he had kept hidden from his father, Stephan. He went to the bathroom and spiked his hair and put on black eyeliner before slipping on a leather jacket and looking at himself in the mirror. He didn't see someone he liked in there. He just saw a disappointment. That's all he was to his father at least. 

Stuart's self-loathing came back to him as he let out a quiet sob and placed his hands on the sink and hung his head down as tears ran down his face.

"Stuart? Are you up?" Axl called from the bottom of the stairs. "Yeah!" Stuart said trying to mask his tears with a joyful voice.

But Axl was too smart for that. He was once a broken teenage boy who had to mask his emotions for the sake of his siblings.

He walked up the stairs and peeked into the bathroom and gasped at the state Stuart was in.

"Stu," Axl said softly as he pulled his brother into his arms rubbing soothing circles on his back.

"Stuart, there was no reason to lie to me about how you're feeling. I still look in the mirror and don't like what I see. But I have my bandmates to help me. Having someone there to help you doesn't make you weak," Axl whispered in a calming voice allowing Stuart to get used to the soft, loving touch his brother gave to him. "What is it that's going through your head?" Axl asked with a kind smile on his face.

Stuart wiggled from Axl's grasp and turned back to the mirror looking in. "I see someone I'm trying so hard to love and to be. This is who I am! I wanna be this way! But I don't love myself. Now that I'm free to dress however I want... I guess I feel like I'm going to disappoint someone with who I am!" Stuart said. "I felt the same way, Stu, but trust me, it gets better. You see how many people love your style. This is LA, not Indiana," Axl said with a smile. Stuart smiled back. "Now, let's go eat, and then we'll head to the store."

They walked into the kitchen and Slash smiled at Stuart. "Woah! Little rockstar!" Slash said. Stuart smiled but tried to show it. Of course, everyone knew he was happy at that comment as he sat in his seat and grabbed the plate of pancakes that lay in front of him. "Well, what color do you guys want your rooms?" Axl asked. "Purple! A dark purple! And I want to fill it with horror posters!" Amy said with a smile. "Let's go kid!" Slash high-fiving Amy. Axl looked at Stuart. "Black, I guess," Stuart said. with the shake of his head. "But I don't care much about interior design, I wanna get my stuff that dad destroyed back. I need a guitar, skateboard, and spray paint!" Stuart said. "Okay, but remember, if you find something you like for your room you can get it. I'm giving you each five hundred dollars. Buy stuff for your room and only three items that don't go to your room! Be responsible!" Axl said. "Yeah! I know," Stuart said rising to his feet. "Now, let's go!" He said.

They arrived at the mall and Amy and Stuart looked at it in awe. They had never been to a mall before. Stephan wouldn't let them go. 

"Wow, we're going in here?" Amy asked. "Yep!" Axl said as he pulled into a parking place near the cheesecake factory. "Stuart, are you alright going alone?" Axl asked. "Yeah," Stuart said. "Alright, we'll meet back at the cheesecake factory in about three hours, that should give you enough time to get what you want," Axl said checking the watch that read eleven o'clock. "So, three o'clock. And because this is your first time, three-thirty, got it?" "Yeah, I'll be fine," Stuart said. "Okay, Stuart go in by Forever Twenty-One. Remember the time and be safe," Axl said. "Yeah," Stuart said leaving the car and racing to the entrance. 

He walked in and gasped at the sight. The mall was huge, teens, children, women, and men were scattered all over the place. Stuart walked over to the escalator, he had never seen one before. He jumped on the escalator and it took him to the top. He didn't even have to move his feet! His smile widened as he giggled. 

Stepping off the escalator, Stuart looked around the mall. Music blared from speakers coming from a store that read Spencer's. "Whoa!" Stuart said as he entered the store. He had a smile plastered on his pale face as he examined the store. It was everything he'd ever want in there.

There was a rack of skateboards with different designs. Pink, purple, black, blue, American flags, Mexican Flags, and an anarchist flag that stood out to the punk rock teen. He grabbed the black skateboard and whistled. "Ooo, Mama," he said licking his lips. He grabbed a few posters of half-naked women and rock bands before placing it all down on the counter. 

A tanned skin boy with curly black hair looked up from his magazine at Stuart. He smiled kindly and rose to his feet. "Find everything okay?" asked the boy politely. "Yeah," Stuart said pulling out his money. "I love your style, my parents would kill me if I dressed like you," the boy said scanning the posters. "So would mine, but I live with my brother now," Stuart said. The boy hummed. "I'm Zach by the way," the boy said. "Stuart," Stuart replied with a smile. "I like that name," Zach said. "You do?" Stuart asked. "Yeah," Zach said. "I think it's cool." 

Zach placed everything in the bag and handed it to Stuart along with a piece of paper that he had been writing on after he and Stuart had introduced themselves. 

"This is my number, I figured we could go to the skatepark sometime on my days off," Zach said. "That would be great," Stuart said taking the bag and stuffing the paper in it. "See ya later, Zach!" Stuart said. "Bye, Stuart!" Zach said waving as Stuart walked out of the store.