KISS THE RING ☆ Taylor Hawkins

17. Walking a line

A/N: Hi everyone! First of all I'd like to say thank you for making this far, I really appreciate that. If you have anything to recommend that is some corrections or similar, I'd like to hear from you. Also I wanted to tell you that the chapters from now on will have a more decent length, above all I'll try to describe everything in the best way possible and I will avoid writing scripts (lol). That said, I hope you enjoy the story and that you can appreciate what's to come. Take care! ♡

Cologne, 1997.

After leaving the English tour behind, it was the turn of the rest of Europe. The Bizarre Fest was one of the most important German festivals from 1987 to 2003. That year it was up to that strange experiment that Dave had set up and, in the meantime, he was chickeing out. He was still far too sober for two hours of non-stop music. "Hey D, would you like to update me on your life? You seem to be slipping away." Claudia stopped Diane by appearing in front of her suddenly, making the redhead slam against her chest. "Hey." - "Are you still on heroin?" She asked the redhead without fear of being overheard by the others. Taylor, who was just behind the two, stopped at a proper distance. "You're stupid?" Diane took her by the arm, squeezing it lightly before moving her away from the entrance to the bar they were about to enter, walking away with her. "I'm sorry, but this seems like the only way to get your attention!" The blond sat down at the same table as Butch, Nate, Dave and Pat while next to them was the table of Demetra, Donita and the rest of the Garbage. The two went off to smoke a cigarette together, which hadn't happened in four days but it seemed like an eternity to both of them. "Would you mind telling me what's going on with you and Taylor?" The redhead put her hands on her arms, walking on herself and throwing her head back. "I don't know?" The bass player laughed at her, adjusting her glasses to her nose before continuing to smoke her cigarette. "Nothing happened between us, just a few kisses. But Claudia, believe me... this bond that has been created, this is the kind of relationship that goes beyond the physical form." The brunette continued to listen to her friend with a surprised face, nodding slightly at her words almost with amazement. "Are you sure you're lucid at the moment?" She then asked, giggling, raising a hand in front of the redhead's face who, shaking her head, laughed with her. "I will be for a while..." Announced the singer squeezing her own arm gently. The expression on the bassist's face changed radically, letting her disappointment show in her eyes. "Are you at least trying to quit?" Diane shook her head again, looking down at her hands as she moved to adjust her rings, looking for anything to do while trying to don't look her friend in her eyes. "Do you see what caused his return?" The redhead raised her head to throw it back again, now visibly tired of this whole situation. "He never forced me to do anything, I decided it." Snapped Diane with her forefinger placed over her chest. "It isn't his fault." She then whispered after noticing Dave who was trying to get their attention with his arms in the air. "Sure, he's just back in your life." - "Foxy, come here! We got some frozen margaritas for you too!" The singer shouted interrupting the conversation between the two. "Frozen margarita? What's that, the local specialty?" Diane laughs at the brunette's question as she turns to look at Dave questioningly. "Anyway... what will you do when you go back to Los Angeles?" The redhead sighed shrugging her shoulders at her friend's words, starting to walk towards the boys sitting at the table. "I don't know, I have no idea. I think I'll go with the flow, hoping that nobody gets hurt."

"You saw me standing by the wall, corner of a main street. And the lights are flashing on your window sill..." Simon Le Bon sang on TV as Diane lay down on her bed. The view from her room was very similar to London, only a little greener, much more refined. Although it was August, there was still a slight, pleasant, cool breeze that made the redhead clench in her light leopard-print red shirt. "All alone ain't much fun, so you're looking for the thrill. And you know just what it takes and where to go." She sang with the Duran Duran, slowly closing her eyes to savor the moment better: the dose was starting to take effect and she was just fine, it seemed to be on the clouds. "Don't save a prayer for me now, save it 'til the morning after. No, don't save a prayer for me now, save it' til the morning after." She let herself be carried away by the synths of the song, smiling slightly as the memory of their 1989 concert at the Universal Amphitheater invaded her mind. Just before Save a Prayer they had played Drug (It's just a state of mind) , that thought made her laugh thinking about how things would go then, just a few years later. Suddenly someone came into the room and the redhead slowly turned towards the door, seeing the slender body of the drummer making space among the suitcases. "Did I give you my key?" She asked almost in a whisper, so that he could hear her given the far too loud volume of the TV. Taylor took off his sunglasses, placing the envelope he had with him on the table, before looking at her and approaching her slowly. "Yea, D. Don't you remember?" He lay down beside her without getting close to her body. "Yea, sure..." She nodded closing her eyes again. "Pretty looking road I try to hold the rising floods that fill my skin. Don't ask me why I'll keep my promise I'll melt the ice." He continued to watch her lips barely move as she tried to sing along with the song. "I got some things for you." He gently took her hand, squeezing it between his before moving over to kiss her fingertips. "Valeron, valium ..." he then added, causing her to open her eyes almost immediately. "The methadone?" The drummer nodded before hugging her in his arms, lightly kissing her forehead. "And you wanted to dance so I asked you to dance but fear is in your soul." This time it was him who accompanied Simon's words, holding her closer to himself. "I can't do it now, Taylor. The concerts, the press... how am I going to do it?" Suddenly she asked, lifting her face from the drummer's chest so that she could look into his eyes. "No, but you can always start taking something, halving your doses and so on..." The blond put his forehead to hers, then she nodded slightly before putting her hands on his face. "Thanks Taylor." They both smiled for a few seconds, then brought their lips together in an innocent exchange of kisses. "You don't have to thank me." He whispered, moving his gaze to her lips while stroking them with his thumb before returning to kiss her harder than before. Diane intertwined her fingers between his blond locks and in the meantime she brought her leg to the boy's side, overlapping him with her body and making him lie on his back. Taylor looked straight into her eyes, stroking her semi-bare thighs, even pushing under the girl's black skirt but without going any further than that. "Why are you taking care of me?" She asked before placing her hands on his lower abdomen, slightly uncovered by the fabric of his t-shirt, slowly caressing him with her fingertips. "Do you really want me to tell you explicitly?" He asked, laughing at her, just tightening his grip on her legs as she nodded. "Because I fucking care about you, Diane." After that statement, the drummer looked away, looking at the ceiling with the fear that he might betray himself with his own eyes. He didn't want to let anything out. The redhead, in response, squeezed her legs closer to his hips, then leaning her chest against him and grabbing his face to kiss him again. Kiss that he returned as if his very life depended by that, bringing both hands on her hips. "You're killing me, Cherry..." He whispered on her lips, pulling away from her for a few seconds, just to catch his breath. This caused a hint of laughter from the singer that had time to brush their lips again before the telephone started ringing on the nightstand. She started to lean towards it when the blond hugged her torso in his arms, wedging her into her grip. "Taylor, I have to answer. It could be LA..." - "That's the problem." Only after a look of resignation from her, he untied his arms from behind her back, letting her crawl to the right side of the bed so she could take the phone. "Diane here, who's talking?" The blond got on his back to be able to observe her, leaning the head on his hand. "Yes, thank you. You can pass the call to me." She smiled faintly as he avoided her gaze, almost instantly getting out of bed to walk over to his pack of red Marlboros. Diane continued to look at him until she heard the man's voice on the other side of the receiver who said her a sweet "How is my Roxy Roller?" - "Hey Iz... I miss you." Taylor laughed before turning to look at her mockingly as he raised his cigarette to his lips. The redhead widened her eyes, watching him with a reproachful look as she pointed to the balcony door. "Am I interrupting something, Diane?"-"N-no, honey. It was just Claudia." She lied, looking back at the blond who, from outside her room, approached the glass door, breathing on it to be able to draw a heart  with his finger that is far from perfect, and then point to her. The redhead shook her head with a hint of half a smile, focusing only on a single thought: what would she have to do to get out of this situation without hurting anyone?