Dream On

Late Night Confessions

Axl held his breath as soon as the words left his lips and in that moment he could feel Slash tense behind him. However, he didn't dare turn around to face him, too scared for Slash's possible reaction, fearing that the other man would yell at him and kick him out or worse laugh at his face.

After what seemed like forever to the hyperventilating Axl, Slash spoke.

"What?" he asked quietly, sounding nothing like Axl had expected and prepared for.

"Please don't make me say it again" Axl whispered, voice drenched in dread, eyelids closed shut in fear.

"Are you serious? Duff didn't set you up for this?" asked Slash in disbelief.

"Of course I'm serous" Axl scoffed. "Why would Duff make me do this?" he asked totally confused.

"To make fun of me" said Slash, his voice like that of a small child's afraid of punishment after stealing too much candy from the cupboard.

"Why?"

"Because I told him a while back that I've fallen hopelessly in love with you."

Axl turned around immediately, shock evident in his features.

"Do you mean that?"

"Of course I do Rosie."

"Thank God. You had me scared for a second there. I thought you were going to yell at me and punch me" he laughed.

"Oh I would never ruin that pretty little face of yours" Slash teased.

"You think my face is pretty?" Axl asked seriously because this wasn't just a teasing game between two friends anymore and they both knew it and it also wasn't just a simple compliment, Axl knew Slash better than that and he knew that behind those words there was a deeper meaning.

"Of course I do. I think everything about you is pretty. I think the way you scrunch your nose whenever you're hungry and you're disgusted by every single item in the fridge is pretty. I think the way you bat your eyelashes at me whenever you sing to me is pretty. I think the cute little noise you make when you first wake up is pretty. I think the way that you're blushing right now is pretty."

Axl blushed even more at that and muttered a small "shut up" under his breath, too stunned to respond properly, but he didn't have to as Slash cupped his face, his callused fingers unusually gentle and soft against his skin. He kissed Axl's forehead and then his nose and both his cheeks and every piece of skin in between before he finally captured Axl's lips in a soft kiss.

Axl's mind took a few seconds to comprehend what was happening but as soon as it did Axl started kissing him back, rose chapped lips heavenly against plump whiskey and coffee flavored ones.

It wasn't a passionate make out kiss full of spit and tongue but it was sensual and it conveyed all those feelings that had been left unspoken for far too long.

They slowly pulled apart, their breathing a little quicker than before, foreheads resting against each other.

Axl rested his head against Slash's bicep once again only this time he was facing Slash and simply smiled at him.

"Thank you" he said after his breathing had slowed down a bit.

"For what?"

"For being here with me now, for holding me, for kissing me" Axl said but he meant so much more. Thank you for being here always, thank you for putting up with my insane mood swings, thank you for taking the time to get to know me and understand me, thank you for loving me even though everyone else thinks I'm damaged goods. But still Axl was sure Slash could understand him, could see the truth in his few words, could read between the lines.

Slash pecked Axl's lips once more and brushed his hair out of his face.

"Anytime Rosie" he said in a light tone, but in no way downplaying the situation. He pulled then the blanket that was tossed on the floor over their bodies, covering them both, and pulled Axl closer to his chest.

"Goodnight" he said after they had both gotten comfortable, before he pressed a final kiss to Axl's forehead and closed his eyes.

"Goodnight" replied Axl after a few minutes, closing his mouth again for a few seconds. "I love you" he muttered and slowly drifted to sleep as well.

But by the time those last few words left his lips Slash was already fast asleep.