Book 1: Lost In Translation (Another Reason To Cry) (Izzy Stradlin FanFic)

Ch. 1: Lost In L.A.

Disclaimer: I do not own GNR or any of their songs.

I was tearing apart my napkin, folding it in half and ripping it, watching as it grew smaller and smaller. The rain outside was beating against the window, reminding me of the same sounds Steven made whenever he decided to go ape shit on his drums.

I was seated at my usual table in the deepest, darkest corner of my neighborhood's local café, sipping at a cup of coffee. Normally I tried to get something a tad lighter, but I'd needed something strong after the fit that Axl threw this morning.

It was the usual tirade about how we kept fucking up during rehearsal, before it escalated into deeper issues like our various drug addictions and drinking problems. Axl went on for about fifteen minutes before we all started to just leave one by one.

Knowing that the other guys would have more than likely headed off to some bars, I opted for the café-the place most of them would never think to go to. And so, here I was, around noon on an out of the ordinary rainy day in L.A., drinking coffee and gazing out the window.

"More coffee, Mr. Stradlin?"

I peeked up through my shaggy, black bangs to see a voluptuous, yet too young for my taste, blonde standing beside my table, a pot of coffee in her hand. By the way she was beaming down at me, I guessed she knew exactly who I was, and was overjoyed with the fact that she just so happened to work at my favorite café.

"Yes, please," I murmured, pushing my empty mug in her direction. I watched her carefully as she bent over, exposing her rather impressive cleavage to me, and began pouring until the cup was nearly full.

"Anything else I can get for you?" she asked, locking eyes with me to let me know that her boobs being in my face was no accident.

"I think I'm all set for now. Thank you, though," I politely declined her innuendo with a wave of my hand.

She gave me a pouty look before turning on her heel and stomping away. I, along with other men, watched her leave to go sulk behind the counter. I rolled my eyes and went back to staring out the rain-splattered window.

That's the problem with all these women. Sure, they're always pretty, and they're sure as hell easy to hook up with. But that wasn't all I ever thought about, and that definitely wasn't what I wanted to settle down with. Not that I was really anywhere near ready to settle down with anyone anyway. My band kept me on the road, and, any woman who was even close to wife material, wouldn't be able to overlook my drug problem.

I probably won't live long enough to settle down anyway, I thought to myself. And, as terrible as it sounds, the thought didn't bother me. Live fast, die young. That was pretty much how everyone I was close to lived. They didn't think much about the future, because we wouldn't make it there, anyway.

Maybe that was the problem with me. I wasnt like Steven and Duff and all them; I thought too much.

A flash of long, red hair spilling out of the sides of a hood caught my eye through the window and my heart sank. I ground my teeth together, ready to deal with Axl barging through the door to go off on me and drag me back to band practice. However, when the figure entered the building and the hood was removed, a face was revealed, and my jaw relaxed and my eyes went wide.

That's definitely not Axl.

She was the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen. Her pale blue eyes darted around the room as she stepped inside, lightly shaking water off of her boots. Her auburn hair was slightly tousled from her hood, and she had a light curl to her lips as if she was hiding a delicious secret all to herself, and I instantly wanted to know what it was.

She beamed at the petulant waitress that had poured my coffee and hurried over to the counter. I watched as she handed her a slip of paper.

The waitress nodded and held up a finger to her, signaling that her order would take a moment. The redhead smiled and nodded before scurrying over to an open seat, right by the counter. She sat down and unwrapped the green, knit scarf from around her neck, placing it onto the back of the chair. As she draped it over the chair to dry, she locked eyes with me and smiled.

Oh, God.

I felt my heart turn into mush. I wanted to look away so that she wouldn't find me creepy, but a part of me-a stronger part-didn't want me to take my eyes off of her.

Feeling like an awkward thirteen year old boy again, I held up my hand and waved at her. Her smile widened and she waved right back with a slim, ivory hand.

So far, so good. I think...

I was deeply considering going over to her and properly introducing myself, but first, I had to build up the nerve to talk to her while simultaneously getting rid of my fear boner.

Just as I felt myself beginning to soften, the waitress brought out a cup holder full of coffee cups and handed it to the girl. The girl tore her eyes away from me as she stood up to take the tray from the waitress. The two women nodded and smiled at each other before they both turned and went their separate ways.

The girl fumbled with her hood until it slouched over her head. I had no time to react as she waved good bye to me before disappearing out the door. I watched her longingly from the window as she hurried away into the rainy, L.A. streets.

Where are your balls, man?

I shook my head and turned back to where she had been sitting. I blinked at the scarf she had left behind, swaying lightly on the chair.

I frantically looked back out the window and saw her standing at a cross walk across the street.

"Shit," I grumbled. I shot up from my seat, stumbling over the table as I rushed over to her scarf and ripped it up off of the chair.

"Hey! You have to pay for that!" The waitress yelled, jabbing at my coffee cup. I completely ignored her and sprinted out the door.

I didn't allow my eyes to leave her as I jogged to the cross walk and bounced up and down from foot to foot, waiting until it was safe to cross. Just as my sign lit up, telling me to cross, hers did too.

"Wait!" I yelled. "You forgot your scarf!"

I ran across the street, being shoved and jeered at by other people as I went. When I reached the other side, the girl had already crossed to safety and the light was on again, this time telling me to stop.

"Aw, come on!" I groaned, stomping my foot.

I felt a rough hand on my shoulder, tugging me back and spinning me around. A very large, hairy, and angry looking man towered over me.

"Where the hell do you think you're going?" He demanded, crossing his arms over his barrel of a chest.

"That redhead girl, she forgot her scarf-"

I turned to point her out to him, but she had disappeared into the hoard of people across the street.

"Uh-huh," he muttered, sounding totally unconvinced. "Why don't you come back and pay for your coffee, huh?"

I bit the inside of my cheek, still scanning the sidewalk for a peek of auburn. She had disappeared, and now I was stuck with her scarf. Maybe that meant she would come back to look for it...?

"Alright, sure. Sorry sir. This isn't like me," I grumbled, clutching the scarf to my chest. "This isn't like me at all."