benumbed ❅ ︎︎l. h.

chapter 2: "the cold, snowy wonderland of the city" ❆

"are we here," I jolt up from my makeshift bed, my hopes only smashed down to a dark pulp of nothing once I see the familiar silhouette of a gas pump.

"obviously not," Axl snaps at my question, irritation in his eyes as he leans his head against the cool, clear window while the faint sound of heavy metal leaks from his headphones.

"just a couple more hours," Dawn informs, turning in her seat to greet me with a half-smile.

I mock her lips & nod, going back to my nap as I put back in my earbuds. I was going to shoot myself before we even made it to Antarctica or Alaska or wherever the hell this iceberg was.

___

"I can't do this, it's snowing... you guys know I hate the cold," Blaze groans as he pulls a suitcase out of the back of the van, small flakes of snow already covering the burgundy colored material.

"maybe we can hang ourselves together," I smirk, grabbing the suitcase next to his.

Kevin closes the hatch after grabbing the last bag, shooing all of us into the entrance of the uber-expensive hotel we'd be staying in for the next month, "hush down you two."

stepping into the palace of faux gold & rhinestones, I'm everything but in awe by the sequence of bright colors & the oh-so basic titanic theme. just like any other place we've stayed in, this would be someone else's paradise. born & raised with the most luxurious life, all I ever wanted was some basic middle-class house garage to sleep in. I seemed to crave the inexpensive things in life rather than what everyone seemed to want.

while Dawn & Kevin check into the most expensive master suite the hotel owns, I stand with Nikki in my arms, my suitcase to the right of me as I stare at what I had to guess was the grand staircase. I fix the tiny, black beanie covering her soft head of dark brown peach fuzz while I wait alone. the boys seem to be interested in some sort of arcade or bar or something to fulfill their boredom.

"see that, babes?" I gently nudge Nikki to the direction of the staircase, "that's where the inconsiderate, lover-drowning Rose meets with her uber-attractive hunk of a boyfriend."

I reposition the small infant on my hip & sigh, "though, Lord knows if you could consider Jack as her boyfriend... the dumb broad lets go, but you'll find that out when you learn to comprehend words & people."

when everything seems still as night, Nikki starts to fuss which I knew would lead to the ticking time bomb of cries & whales. swiftly, I drop my suitcase off next to Dawn who was still trying to check in with the naïve, early-twenties receptionist who couldn't tell the difference between a debit & credit card. dumb broad. I give Kevin a heads up about satan's spawn in my arms, receiving a nod & a hand wave to go.

"it's alright, Sixx," I coo, using the nickname only I've given her, while stepping out into the cold, snowy wonderland of the city. I sway forward & back, hoping to ease her discomfort while I stare at the sequence of lights in the early evening air. the city is covered in a blanket of iridescence on top of the layer of plain white snow. honestly, it was beautiful. I had only wished I could be somewhere more underground & grunge.

little satan child continues to whine in my arms, I finally decide to hold her against my chest. my first assumption of her having to be tired once she lays her head against my shoulder.

"they're ya go, kid," I smirk.

I continue to stare down every single piece of the city I could see, hoping to find myself a mate in this time of need & loneliness. only, I wasn't lonely due to the company of Sunny, Cher, & the two demonic spawns. Nikki wasn't too bad .. I mean, she can't talk or walk or pretty much do anything. I still need to finder my winter-break fling, though. the brown of my eyes scan every inch of the place, I find myself SOL until I see a certain someone from across the street.

he was tall, lean, & slender: my type. I could care less about the quiff of his blonde hair, I'd rather see it wet & in his face, but that's just me. he takes a drag of his cigarette, inhaling for what seems like the longest three seconds of my life before pulling the cancer stick from between his lips, a trail of smoke following behind. was that a tattoo on his hand? there was no way I could tell from the distance between us. with four-lanes between, I knew he was an attractive human being who I needed to make myself known to.

just kidding..

with the assumption of him being too many years older than me, I decide to check him off of my list of competitors. that is, until i made brief eye contact with the prince of seduction. at least, I thought I had. turning to my left & right, I see no one next to me. which was good, right? as I turn back, a smirk grows on his face while he continues to stare before dropping the cigarette to the floor, stepping out the lit tobacco stick with the sole of his shoe.

maybe he thinks I'm a teen mom. damn you Nikki & your inability to shut the hell up. I grimace from the sound of baby Sixx's cries. trying to calm down the small ball of shrieks, I notice blonde haired slender man still staring from across the way. I turn, giving him my full attention. he stares back, one more second of eye contact between the both of us, before he nonchalantly nods.

what..?

he smirks again, then turns straight around to walk up the steps of what I guessed were apartments. he seems like a cocky asshole, so a definite no on the competitors list.

"see, Sixx," I rock her in my arms, cooing to her in a whisper, "that there is called a fuckboy."