She Wouldn't Say Goodbye. (Guns N' Roses)

Twenty Eight

-Steven-

It was about three in the afternoon I had a Slurpee in hand and was hanging out on the strip. I walked into Guitar Center to see what new drum stuff they had. I looked at a great Zildjian symbol but I didn't have two hundred bucks to spend on anything right now... or ever. I went and looked at some different drum sticks, before going to look a the bulletin board they had put up near the back of the store. I took a large drink of my frozen drink, regretting it soon after 'cause I got massive brain freeze. I saw a new ad posted on the board, which wasn't surprising there was literally ten new things on here every day. But for some reason this ad caught my eye, I recognized the name; Contact Izzy. It was looking for another guitarist in an already ''established" band. I looked at the flyer and grabbed it off the wall and walked to the front counter, ringing the little silver service bell once I got there. "Hey, can I use the phone?" I called over to the guy, waving my hand with the flyer around in it through the air.  The clerk turned around to face me, looking bored, "I guess so?" He said more like a question.  "Thanks." I walked around the counter and grabbed the black phone off the hook and dialed Saul's number quickly. He answered in a tired voice,  "Hello?"  "Hey, Man. I saw this ad in Guitar Center you need to go apply for."  "What Steven?"  "This ad," I said waving it around even though he couldn't see me. The employee looked at me annoyed. "Where and what band?" Slash questioned on the other end. "It doesn't say what band but it says to call Izzy, it sounds like they need a guitar player bad."  "Give me the number, Stevie." I relayed the number to him, "You need to call it." "I will as soon as I get off the phone with you, Stevie. Thanks." "No problem at all, Saul. Hey, that rhymed." "Bye, Steve." He said before hanging up on me. "Thanks for letting me use the phone." I smiled at the clerk before clumsily putting the phone back down on the holder. I folded the flyer up and stuffed it in my jean pocket, "Are you going to buy anything?" The clerk questioned me, glancing around. I shook my head, "No, not today- but someday." I replied hopefully, before strolling back out of the store and onto the sidewalk.

-Izzy-

"I don't have any more fucking money, Man." I yelled into the phone, a pause came from the other end of the receiver.  "You have two days, Stradlin." The voice boomed on the other end before hanging up. I slammed the payphone down, running a hand over my greasy face. "Fuck!" Kat walked out of the convenience store towards my right, a pack of Marlboro Reds, and a bag of candy in her hand. "Did you get everything worked out, Iz?" I shook my head 'no'. "What are you going to do?" She asked calmly, taking the plastic wrapping off the new cigarette pack. "I don't know at this point really. I guess I'm going to try to find something quick to do, maybe borrow some money." She sighed popping a cigarette in her mouth. "You want one?" Kat questioned, looking towards me with her eyebrow raised slightly. "Yes, please." She handed me the pack and I quickly took one out, lighting it with the lighter I had reserved in my coat pocket. I went to hand her back the cigarettes, but she put her hand up stopping me. "Keep 'em, Iz. You need them more than I do." I ran my hand over my face again, lifting up my 'bangs' slightly, feeling the cool air touch my face.  "Where the fuck am I going to get eight hundred dollars in two days!" I practically yelled, Causing Kat to look at me sadly, before her eyes went wide. "Eight hundred dollars! Izzy, I thought you only owed four!" I shook my head, a bit embarrassed at the situation. Not every day you owe a pretty big time dealer almost a thousand bucks. "How much money do you have right now?" Kat questioned, looking at me seriously. "I have probably fifty dollars - max." She shook her head, "We'll come up with something, can you get some stuff from somebody else and sell it?" I shrugged, "I could certainly try."   She pursed her lips. "I might know someone." I looked at her, a little taken back. "Why and who do you know?" I questioned her, feeling a bit out that Kat would be hanging around drug dealers.  "Well- I don't know the guy too great, but he's the boyfriend of this girl I know."    "This sounds, a little unsafe."  Kat stopped walking and looked at me, coming very close to my face.  "You're the one worried about safety when you go out and sell drugs every night, take drugs almost every day and now have a bigger dealer than you on your ass. You're a little past the point of worrying, Iz."  I grinned at her, throwing my arm over her shoulder, "You always have a point to make, Katherine." She scrunched her nose up at me. "I suppose I do, Jeffery." We kept on walking down the street. "So, tell me about this guy?"  "Well he works at that Cafe about a block from the Gas Station I work at, his name is Eddie. He makes a killing, literally. He has quite a lot of money, but he works at the cafe because he also has a horrible habit with the shit." I laughed at her choice of words.  "He could probably hook you up, he has a stash at his house. He grows Marijuana too."   "Take me to his house." I said abruptly.  Kat looked up at me. "What?"   I stared at her. "Take me to his house."      "Right now?" Kat questioned.     I nodded my head, "Yes, I have two days to come up with eight hundred dollars."    "Alright, I guess he'll be home."  We took the bus to Glendale where he lives, it only took thirty or forty minutes to get to this guy's house. "Here's his place, I'll come in with you." Kat spoke, walking ahead of me to his door. There was a car in the driveway so it was presumable that he was home. Kat knocked on the door, waiting for a response. A medium height guy answered the door, he had dark sandy colored hair and was dressed extremely casual.    "Hey, Kat, what's up?"  He greeted, "You wanna come in?"    Kat smiled, "Yeah, that would be great. How are you?"   He moved out of the way, so Kat and I could walk in, for some reason I was holding her hand. "Oh, I'm doing good, got a load of Coke last night, I'm trying to figure out what to do with." He laughed.  "Well, I can actually think of something." Kat stated as Eddie closed the front door.    "And what's that?" He walked over and sat down on the sofa, motioning for us to do the same.   "Well, you want to explain the story, Iz?" Kat asked me, looking at my face. I shrugged, "I guess." I turned towards Eddie who was sitting across from us. "I need eight hundred dollars by Thursday, and Kat said you could help."  He pursed his lips. "You want me to give you drugs to sell, or do you need the money?"  "At this point either, I'm in deep shit." Eddie stood up and walked over to a small closet that was in the nearby kitchen. He opened the door and got out a small safe with a handle. He reached around his neck, removing a key from a small silver chain and opening the grey safe. Eddie reached into it and grabbed a large wad of cash from the bottom. He counted some out, before closing everything back up and putting it away. He sauntered back over to the couch. "I'm going to assume you're a good friend of Kat's right?" Eddie questioned, putting a large amount of cash into his shirt pocket. "Yes, I'm her best friend I would say." Kat nodded, "It's true, I wouldn't have come here if it wasn't imperative, Ed."    "You're Izzy, aren't you."  He questioned, I nodded, "That's me."   "Then here." He grabbed the money back out of his pocket and handed it over to me.  "There's eight hundred dollars there, that's how much you said you needed right?"  I nodded, "Thanks, Man. You don't know, what kind of a bind you got me out of."   He grinned, "Well, I've got a favor now too."