Living Like A Runaway

When Love & Hate Collide

A/N: Another trigger warning babes, be safe.

Our interview was at eleven o' clock exactly, but I had to wake up extra early so I could put cover-up on my face before I went home to get ready. When Nikki saw it the next morning, he was pretty supportive about it. "How bad does it hurt?" He asked, and I shrugged, wincing as my fingers grazed it; it was mostly just searingly tender. "We gotta cover this up, though," the bassist mused.

"Yeah, but what with?" I asked."I doubt regular foundation is gonna hold with this..." 

Nikki smiled at me and patted my head, a chuckle escaping his lips. "Lucky for you, we stole some tattoo cover-up from the last time we were inked. You'd be a little darker than us, but lighter than Vince, hmm... I'll be right back." He seemed quite proud of himself, which made me laugh. 

Meanwhile, Tommy came down the stairs, chipper as ever. "So, I got a hold of Blackie, Stel, and he said he'd tell Axl what was going on. Oh, and I only mentioned the parts with Sonic. It's uh, more your place to deal with..." he glanced down at my thighs, and I nodded, giving him a big hug in thanks. He had no idea how much I appreciated it.

Somehow, Nikki managed to get the shade of tattoo cover-up almost exactly right on the first try; it was a little light, but I'd cover it with regular foundation when I got home. Tommy was ultimately the one to drop me off once I was ready, though; if it had been Nikki, then another unnecessary conflict would arise, and I really didn't need that. 

I got ready for the interview in solitude, avoiding everyone possible, but especially Sonic. It suddenly sickened me that the guitarist lived with my family and me, but I wasn't cruel enough to send her on her way; besides, it would give me a bad image. Anyway, though, I dressed myself in an oversized Steel Panther shirt, short shorts, fishnet stockings, ankle combat boots, and messy smoked makeup. 

Once I was ready, of course, I came downstairs to find my dad and Sonic conversing. "I think I'm going to be moving out soon, Mr. Starr..." she began, explaining how with the money she had now, she could get her own house. I, of course, put on a show of being upset, but inside, I was so fucking happy about it. At least I could be safe at home, then.

"You okay, Stella?" Stix asked me, referring to my swollen face. "Somethin' looks off there."

I shrugged, giving the drummer my best lighthearted smile. "I'm all good, Stix," I promised him, smiling gratefully. "Just a little sick, I'll be fine."

Sonic and I both went to the interview separately, of course, and apparently so had Vicky and Trixie, since both of their cars were there as well. As soon as we got inside, we were whisked away by set people who were shouting directions at all four of us now, Jasmine doing her best to handle the situation. Eventually, she did get it all under control, which I had to give her credit for. 

"Nervous?" I asked my bassist, who was staring at the sky dreamily. "You seem a little out of it."

Trixie laughed and shook her head. "Nah, I'm thinking about Brian... I wonder what he'd have to say on television." I only chuckled; she really was still crushing on him, and I was happy for her.

Finally, we heard the interviewer announce our band name, and it was time. We all sat down in front of cameras and I live audience of people, on four separate bar stools. "Welcome, welcome, girls!" The hostess and interviewer, Layne Matthews, welcomed us. We all knew to act polite and calm; this was going to be interesting.

"So," Ms. Matthews began, "You girls have just dropped your first album called Apocalyptic Love. Why don't you tell us more about the title?" We let Sonic speak first, and she told the all truthful story of how it was a scrap I'd had, and we started it all in my dad's recording studio. The next question was also pretty easy, as it was just asking about the process of making the album. Then, the topic started to drift a little.