Faded Memories (Guns N Roses - Izzy / Axl / OC)

Starstruck

November 23. 2012

His eyes looked exactly as I remembered them. Dark, piercing. Not quite brown, a little greyish. Unique, for sure. These eyes I haven't been able to forget for nearly 25 years. Still I felt a shiver running down my spine as he kept eying me with that intensive stare, trying to figure out who I was. I couldn't help feeling my heart breaking a little more each second he wasn't responding.
He really looked good. A little worn out, maybe. But we all did after this this long time. We weren't teenagers anymore.

So there I was again. Standing in front of Izzy Stradlin, feeling dizzy because of his stare. As if I've ever got to forget these eyes. Damn. It felt like a lifetime.
And he still was sexy as hell. Wearing a black 3 piece suit. His dark hair short and slightly streaked grey, covered by that typical paperboy cap.
He looked different. But so did I. Time had been good to me though. I still didn't look much older than 38 and dressed casual most of the time. Wearing blue jeans and an old Ramones shirt I wanted him to remember me. Like the day we met. But it didn't seem like he did.

He gave me a casual smile and my heart skipped a beat.
'Ana from Cali, huh?' He asked plainly.
My hope rose. Maybe he did remember me? I must have left a mark, right? He surely did leave one on me. I've never really gotten over him.
'We spent a whole day together in Mountain View. Back in '88.' I replied hopefully.
He looked at me for a couple of seconds.
'Was it good?' He asked.
Was he kidding me? What did that mean? Didn't he remember anything at all? Maybe I'd been romanticizing things too much in the past. My heart broke.
I shouldn't have felt that way. Not anymore. What we had was more than two decades ago. I had a job, a kid, a life.
I gave him a small smile and simply replied
‚Yeah, it was good.'

***

A few days earlier

'Mom!' I heard my daughter Melissa yell, the front door slamming with a loud bang. God, I missed her like crazy since she left the house, but that wasn't a reason to yell every time she walked into the door now.
Disconnecting the flatiron, I wondered what this was about again. I stepped down the stairs as I heard her yell from the kitchen. 'Mom! Where are you?'.
'Coming.' I rolled my eyes as I reached the hall downstairs. 'God, honey. Could you please not yell like a lunatic each time you walk into the door?'
When I reached the kitchen, Melissa stood at the counter smiling freakishly, waving something in her hand. 'You'll never guess what I have got.' Her cheeks blushed in excitement. I smiled at her. She really was beautiful.
Melissa had turned 23 in March and I couldn't be much more proud of her. She was tall and slim. With her long black hair and the piercing blue eyes she always attracted attention.

As a kid she had been difficult though. She had been a wild kid. Always busy, always on the run, alsways looking for trouble. I'd been worried a lot back then. She couldn't deal with boundaries. If you'd try to make her do things she didn't want to, she took off leaving you high and dry. I was glad she settled down a bit, figuring out what to do in life. Even though I never pushed her, I was relieved she went to college. She was really smart. But still restless sometimes. I wondered if she was still missing the father figure in her life.
Robert had left when she was a kid. I'd never remarried. I thought it wouldn't work out anyway. The time with Robert had shown I wasn't made for marriage.

'Mom! You hear me?' Melissa's voice brought me back to reality.
'Huh?' I didn't hear a single word she said. She waved again with those paper strips in her hand. Were that tickets? I looked at her suspiciously.
'I said: Do you know what that is?' She grinned at me like she just won the lottery.
I shrugged and turned to the coffee machine to pour some fresh coffee. When I held out a mug she shook her head. 'Mom!!!' She stomped her foot. I chuckled. Since she was a kid she used to stomp if she didn't get enough attention.
'Okay, okay, honey.' I took a sip of coffee. 'So tell me what you've got there.'
She grinned at me again and bounced a bit. I raised an eyebrow. That had to be something super special.
'I got us tickets for the...hold on...' She took a deep breath and squeaked. 'Guns 'n' Roses show at the Joint in Vegas.' While I stood there dumbfounded, she bounced again.
Was she serious? I couldn't think straight.
'Vegas? Like in Las Vegas?' I asked stupidly.
'Yeah. This is awesome, right?' Still grinning she handed me the tickets.
What was this all about?
'And you wanna go with me? Why won't you take your friend Emma? What should I do in Vegas anyway?' I shrugged and sipped my coffee.
'You're kidding, right? Mom, that's Guns 'n' fucking Roses! You used to tell me stories about these concerts all the time when I was young. I really want to see them. And I bet you do either.' She really was exited. I almost felt bad that I wasn't that exited all.
'That's not Guns 'n' Roses anymore, honey. Today it's just the "Axl Rose show". There's nothing left of the original band.'
She kept grinning at me. 'You don't know who's their special guest.'
I looked at her questioning. She bounced again and clapped her hands. 'Mr. Izzy Stradlin himself. Yeah.'

I felt like someone swept the ground off my feet. Thank god I could get hold of the kitchen table to steady myself. Oh Jesus. Izzy would be at that show? Suddenly I was really scared to see him again.
Melissa must have seen me turning pale because she hurried to sit me down on one of the chairs. 'Mom? You ok? You nearly fainted.'
I looked up to her and gave her a small smile. 'I'm okay, honey. It's just... Uhm...I really like to see Izzy again. Thank you.'
She chuckled. 'Yeah, figured. You still have a whole room with posters and pictures of him.' Then she eyed me suspiciously. 'I never gave it much thought, but is that why you and dad split up? Because you're totally starstruck?' What? Where did that come from?
'Look, your dad and I split up a long time ago. I guess I just didn't love him enough.' I shrugged. 'And I'm not starstruck.'
Melissa laughed. 'Yes, you totally are. Your crush on him is totally childish, mom. But okay, I get it. He really was kinda hot back then.' She gave me a serious look. 'So we're going to Vegas, then?' I just nodded.
We were going to Vegas, I guessed. And the thought of seeing Izzy Stradlin again, made my heart beat faster. I was excited and freaked out at the same time. Suddenly all memories came rushing back.