speechless | roger taylor

eight

"Are you wearing that to the party tonight?" Elise asked Roger, motioning towards the black and gold blazer that was on the bench at the foot of his bed. She sat down on the edge of his bed as he rummaged through his closet, attempting to find the denim jacket that he was thinking of.

"What?" he asked, turning his head to look at her. She pointed at the blazer. "Oh, that? Yeah, I was thinking of it. Do you think I'd look good in it?"

"Oh, yeah. You'd look good in anything," she told him nonchalantly, shrugging her shoulders. Roger hummed happily, a blush spreading to his cheeks that he had hoped would fade away by the time he had found his jacket.

"Aha!" Roger cried out happily a few moments later, pulling the jacket from the coat hanger that it was on. He turned around to face, holding it up over his torso. "This would work perfectly!"

Elise stood up, walking over and taking the coat as he handed it to her. "Have you got a full length mirror?" she asked, sliding the white denim over her shoulders. She looked at Roger as she awaited an answer, the sleeves falling just over the heel of her hands.

"I do," he said, stepping towards her slightly. "You've—um—you've got a hickey there."

Roger faintly held his fingers up to the bruise on her chest, mostly hidden by her top. His touch was as soft as a feather, barely skimming over her skin. She closed her eyes, not quite sure what to do as he looked at his work.

"Would it bother you if I didn't try to hide it?" she asked, her eyes still closed. Her voice was quiet, soft almost, as if she was scared he'd get angry. He hadn't seen her this vulnerable, not even when she was pinned under him, completely naked, on his bed the other night.

"I wouldn't mind," he whispered. Things between them had gone from normal to something special, something he'd been hoping would happen. His hand came up to her rosy cheek, cupping it as she leaned into his touch.

Roger wasn't sure what he wanted to do. He wanted to kiss her, he wanted to tell her how he felt, but there was something stopping him. He was afraid that he wasn't good enough for her. He knew he wasn't—he knew that she must've heard every little story about him and his groupies, and that scared him the most. He knew that she probably thought of him just like everybody else did; someone who couldn't commit, someone who just wanted to sleep around.

He hoped, with every last fibre in him, that she didn't. He hoped that she'd give him a chance.

Elise pulled away after a moment of the two of them just standing. She had hoped he would kiss her, and he didn't. "Where's your bathroom?" she asked, looking up at him. His blue eyes bore holes into her brown ones, trying to regain himself before speaking. His voice would've failed him.

Roger cleared his throat softly. "'S just over here," he said, moving around her to show her the bathroom.

She followed him as if she was a lost puppy, mumbling a small 'thank you' as she walked into the bathroom, closing the door behind her. She took a look at herself in the mirror and sighed heavily, turning on his water faucet and splashing some cold water in her face.

Elise sat on his floor and pulled her knees up to her chest, panicking as everything hit her at once. She had promised her mum that she'd bring her boyfriend back home when she went for her birthday when they talked on the phone yesterday, a boyfriend that she didn't have. She knew that at this point, she couldn't back out, not with how her dad was.

She'd always wondered why her mum hadn't left him yet. He wasn't physically abusive, no, he was just very good with his words. He could easily manipulate both of them, and when something didn't go his way, he'd scream until his voice gave out. Elise had been scared of him since the first time he screamed at them, and up until now, she'd always had someone with her when she'd go visit them.

She thought of asking Roger if he'd come with her. She could've asked Brian, had he not been with Chrissie, but she wasn't nearly as close to him as she was with Roger. She'd only met the boys a few days ago and she felt like it was too much to ask, but she had no other way out.

She stood from her spot and took a deep breath before opening the bathroom door, making her way, quite slowly, to the kitchen where Roger was stood, placing his lasagna on two plates.

Elise decided that she'd ask him to be her date later on. Right now, all she cared about was her lasagna.

-

"Thank you for letting me borrow your jacket," Elise said as she and Roger pulled into the very full car park near the bar where Freddie had decided on hosting his party at.

"'S not a problem, really. You look better in it than I ever did," he told her, unbuckling his seatbelt and opening his door, stepping out and making his way over to her door to open it before she had the chance. She smiled up at him and stepped out, the slightly cooler air wrapping around her.

"Shall we?" she asked, a bright smile on her face. She wasn't one for parties, but she wouldn't pass up a chance to be with John and his friends—not anymore, at least. She was glad, now, that John had forced her to go meet them that night. Everything felt different when she was with them.

Roger nodded and absentmindedly took her hand in his, intertwining their fingers together as they walked across the road. Elise's thumb rubbed against his knuckles, a substitute for her fidgeting habits when she got nervous.

Right as they walked into the building, it felt as if they were smacked in the face with not only the smell of cigarettes and alcohol, but also the smell of sweat as everyone danced around to the best of their ability. Roger kept his grip on Elise's hand, making sure she wouldn't get pulled away by the mob of people as they tried to find the rest of the band.

As soon as Elise laid her eyes on John, she retracted her hand from Roger's and practically ran into John's open arms. It was how she greeted him at this point, no matter how long it had been since they had seen each other last.

"Hello, munchkin," John smiled, his arms holding her tightly against him. She buried her head in his hair, something she usually did when she hugged him and sighed.

"I missed you!" she squealed as Roger finally made it over to them. He sat down beside Brian and ordered himself a beer, deciding once again, that he needed to stay sober to take Elise home. Brian looked at him with his head tilted and he shrugged, only nodding towards the girl that was with John.

"You've only been away from me for a day," he chuckled. "I've missed you, too."

"I know, but we usually call once a day, and I wasn't able to!"

Elise laughed at her own comment and sat down beside John, checking her pockets for her smokes. "Fuck," she muttered, realising that she had left them back home. "Can I lend a smoke from either of you?"

Roger nodded and quickly pulled out his cigarettes, passing her one. She placed it loosely between her lips and he got his lighter, lighting it for her with a smile. "Thank you," she said.

"So, Elise," Brian beamed, "there's supposed to be a meteor shower later on next week, would you be interested in watching it with us? I've got a perfect field near my flat we could watch it at, maybe I could teach you some things about the stars?"

Elise looked as happy as she possibly could be at that moment. She was glad that he wanted to include her in things—it made her feel less of a burden. "I'd love to! Are you sure you don't mind me butting in with your band time?"

Brian laughed, "I'm sure, and you wouldn't be butting in. We adore you."

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