Goddess of Rock

Twelve

Edging on a Year after the taping of that final episode of what became known as Goddess of Rock, Bobby was deliriously happy. While it'd taken a bit of Time to get all their kids used to the idea and make the necessary arrangements, he was still happily taken by the young ginger, who'd moved herself and her kids down to Florida with him and his. A Year ago, he couldn't have said whether he actually thought such an outcome'd occur, but he certainly hadn't expected it to.

Since they were still happily in a relationship, much to the chagrin of some of the other contestants, there was no need to do a season two of the show. Instead, they were in a backstage dressing room, preparing for the reunion show that'd be the last one ever filmed, and they were closing this chapter for good. Just down the hall, Bret was getting ready for the reunion episode taping of his own Reality dating show, Rock of Love, which hadn't garnered him nearly the same outcome. Being a party-boy with some serious commitment issues, not to mention simply picking the wrong girl as his winner, he was already slated to do a season two of his own show.

Before the bassist headed out onto the stage set up before a live audience–and across from the section set up for nineteen of the girls–Bret meandered over to give him a gentle clap on the back. He was happy that this show'd worked out so well for him, that he'd found the woman he planned to stay with for the rest of his Life. Unorthodox it might be, it was certainly one way to meet the Love of one's Life, and that was what mattered to him.

"Thanks, man," Bobby chuckled, wrapping an arm around the blonde's shoulders. "I honestly didn't know what to expect when I got that call last September."

"Hell, ya told me thatcha were thinking about not signing on to do it!" he laughed as they pulled away from one another.

"Well, I honestly wasn't gonna do it at first," the bassist admitted. "Ya know what a private guy I am outside the band."

"Don't I know it, and well?" Bret chuckled. "You've been that way since the Day Rikki and I metcha back in 1980, and I don't think you're ever gonna Change."

"Now, looking back on that Day–I'm glad I did do it, 'cuz otherwise, I wouldn't have met Blaze," he told him. "And Raven's a fuckin' riot, once ya get her drunk enough and get her going."

"Never thought I'd see the Day thatcha let alcohol be brought around ya again, man," the vocalist responded with a grin, glad to hear he could be around the substance without being tempted too much.

Their conversation was cut short by the stage manager knocking on the open door and telling Bobby that it was Time to go. He'd roughly a minute to be at his post so he could head out onto the stage, or he was gonna throw off the whole show, and that was the last thing any of them wanted without him being sick. Nodding, he gave his friend and band mate one last hug before heading off behind the stage manager to take his place.

Hosting the show was a guy with a now long-Time career in hosting various shows and radio stints, starting with the Headbanger's Ball on MTV in the mid-nineties. While they didn't know each other quite as well, Riki Ratchman was pretty good friends with Bret and fellow rocker Axl Rose, the latter having known him for over a decade at this point. Even though he didn't trust Axl as far as he could throw him, the bassist did trust the man he'd called his best friend since long before Guns n' Roses was a dot on the musical map. If he was cool with him hosting the reunion episode of Rock of Love, he didn't see why he shouldn't let him host the reunion for the cast of Goddess of Rock.

Once given his cue, the bassist took a deep breath and plastered a smile on his kisser before he ran out from behind the curtain hiding him from the audience and cameras. He'd managed to snag a quick kiss from his girlfriend, and that'd helped steady the nerves he didn't show to the rest of the World most Times. As much as he was her rock when she needed the Strength, Blaze filled the same role for him when he needed her to, very much making theirs a give-and-take kinda Love.