Since I Don't Have You (Guns N' Roses - Duff McKagan)

Chapter Twenty

When Izzy had returned back with my brothers, it had been a few hours later. Duff had spent a little time with me, but once his clothes had been washed in my washing machine, he thought it was best if he gave me some space for the remainder of the day. As for my brothers, they were very stand-off for the rest of the day and only really spoke to Izzy. This was due that I kept to myself and spent a lot of time in my bedroom. I didn't want to talk to Mick, not after how he was towards me. He could have been more understanding towards my wishes, but no.

Today was a whole new day though and I was expecting Duff to show up at my apartment sometime soon. Izzy had gotten up earlier than me and left, he had told me he was going to go get Sasha and Dominic and he was going to spend the entire day with them, without Alison. Apparently if Alison tried to refuse him taking the kids, he was going to go straight to a lawyer and meet her in court. At least that was what he told me. His kids were his priority and by the sounds of it, Izzy and Alison wouldn't be salvaging their marriage. But I didn't know, as much as Izzy claimed he hated her guts for what she did to him and their family, I knew he loved her with all his heart. So I guess I had to expect the unexpected.

"Hey Shelia." Mick's voice rung from the doorway to my bathroom. I was in the middle of washing my face when he startled me, but I tried to play it off as if I knew he was there all along.

"Mick." Was my reply as the water dripped down my face before I could grab my towel. "What do you want? To tell me that I'm being unreasonable?" I sarcastically say, not caring if I offended him or not. He was staying in my apartment, it wasn't the other way around.

"No, actually the opposite." Mick leaned his shoulder against the doorway. "I wanted to say sorry for how I acted and spoke to you yesterday." He murmured. "You are my sister, I should take into consideration your wishes and after all, this is your place, not mine."

"So it took you the entire day to figure that out?" I raise my head, feeling that my face was completely refreshed and dry.

"Nah, I figured it out shortly after we went out with Izzy. I just was too proud to apologise yesterday, you know, might fucking hurt my ego or something." He shrugged. "So I'm sorry. You weren't jealous, you were just trying to look out for us and after what that fuckwit told us, I understand why you hate it so much."

"I wouldn't go out of my way to spoil your fun, Mick. But I'll put my foot down at drugs." I ran a brush through my hair. "I've been through a lot and every bad thing that has happened over the last few years, all relates to drugs and that always swings back around and-" I paused as Mick finished my sentence.

"Comes back to Duff?"

"Yeah." I give him half a nod.

"He's used and abused you and you still keep him around, I don't get it Shell. He is a piece of shit, you could do so much better than him." Mick crosses his arms, a stern expression on his face.

"He's lucky Izzy was there, because I told him I never wanted to see him again." I placed the brush down on the vanity by the sink.

"And there you went, falling back down the rabbit hole. You should have cut ties with him once and for all. You are my sister, you deserve to be treated like a princess... not a fucking doormat." Mick exclaimed, getting a little crossed just thinking about Duff.

"This is his last chance. If he can prove me wrong and clean himself up, then I'll be proud. But if he slips, that's it." I put on some perfume and turned to face Mick.

"You are too soft on him." Mick says coldly.

"It's because I still love him, despite everything." I twisted the ring around my finger. "And I hate how much I still do, but I can't help it." I looked down at my ring this time, while twisting it. "Duff is a good guy and I know his potential, it's just his addictions, they turn him into someone he's not." Just talking about Duff, about how sweet he could be and the type of person he was when he wasn't completely wasted or under the influence of drugs had my heart jumping. Maybe I haven't faced an entirely sober Duff, but when he has been sober enough, he was the man of my dreams.