14 years - Axl Rose x OC

14

-January 21st, 1990

Lita Monroe had been sitting lazily on her balcony's beach chair, intently reading a Stephen King novel, when the phone rang in the kitchen. She heard it in the distance, its quiet ring disrupting the dialogue of Bill Denbrough's stutter. Getting up, she placed the hefty book on the chair and opened the half-closed glass door and walked toward the phone.

It's probably Jack calling to tell me he'll be home late again, she thought, he always is when he's drinking.

The AC ticked on, a signal that her aloof attempt at keeping the living room cool had failed. Picking up the landline, the band's manager shouted in her ear, "You need to get down here!" And upon further explanation, claimed that Della and Slash had gotten into a catfight in the studio, the second time since she'd last been there, four days ago.

Making her way out of the apartment and into the elevator,

(The same old classical music playing, boring her out of her mind)

before finding her car in the building's lot. As Lita turned the key in the ignition, she wondered why she even bothered trying to break up the fight in the first place. Why couldn't she be like Jack and sip her whiskey like a dehydrated animal searching for water?

Three days ago, Jack had called Lita from recording studio number four (where he had been practicing on a new bass) to tell her that he had been interrupted by the screaming coming from Della and Slash in the hall. All he could say in his half-drunk interpretation of their bickering was something along the lines of, "He can't keep his hands off the groupies...She can't keep her hands off him."

From what Lita could tell of the two's relationship-could she even call it that?-was the constant miscommunication and lying that came from both of them. Della, an obvious hopeless romantic who sucked the life from every unwilling partner, had attached herself to yet another man who did not want to live in her traditional, monogamous lifestyle. In other words, she wanted to settle and he wanted to fuck.

They had arguments constantly, and this one was no different. More than likely, Della found her "boyfriend" embedded with another woman, remnants of cocaine and heroin left on his body, with no other answer to her insistent questioning other than, "I don't know."

It was quite sad honestly.

As her closest friend, Lita wanted Della to be happy more than anything. Yes, her and Slash looked good together on the outside, like Della hoped for. But, Lita could see underneath that this relationship wouldn't last another month with the conflicting worldviews.

Led Zeppelin's "Candy Store Rock" began on her car's radio as Lita pulled into Geffen.

Strutting down the hall in a quick pace, she could hear crying in the distance. Shit. Last time this happened, she hadn't been there, but Della had come to her afterward in the same manner. Opening the studio's heavy door, Lita could see Steven consoling Della as she wiped the snot from her nose. He took a tissue from his pocket and handed it over. Steven was always sweet like that.

"You okay, hon?" Lita asked, kneeling down in front of her friend and pushing the wet hair from her tear-stained eyes.

"H-he...I-I saw him with a-another..."

"Oh," Lita hugged Della tightly. Lita thanked God she'd never been in this situation, and she couldn't even imagine what Della was feeling, but she tried her best to soothe her cries. "When was this," Lita whispered, patting her back softly.

"W-when wasn't it?" She sobbed harder into Lita's shoulder. "I saw...it...when I came into the studio." Della lifted her head to wipe the runny mascara from her eyes and grabbed another tissue from Steven. As Della went back to her sniffling with him, Lita looked over empathetically, silently whispering to him, "Where is Slash?"