… … …

Conflicted Chapter 22🎀:

Maddy P.O.V

My mother was furious at me to help clean the house since Duff had agreed to come with the band, reluctant at first but then, after hearing his sister's heartbroken attitude, deciding to reconsider not coming.

I chose to wear shorts and a satin baby blue crop top.

“Young lady, what are you wearing!" my mother yelled, putting her fists on her hips and looking me over.

“Mom! It's only Duff and his friends." I whined, wanting Izzy to see me in this clothing.

"Okay, as long as you don't wear that again," she remarked as she prepared the boys' lasagne.

I couldn't stop smiling since I knew Duff would be arriving with them any minute now.

Izzy and I had only been apart for a day, but it felt like forever; even if we didn't leave on good terms, I still missed him a lot.

And Axl.

I never got to thank him for helping me that day.

“YOUR FAVORITE KID IS HOME!" Duff shouted as he opened the door, allowing the knob to hit the wall like he always did, creating an even larger hole in the plaster.

I rolled my eyes at him and walked away, feeling angry again.

My brother was not the evil guy in this situation; I know he did nothing wrong, but I was still furious about how he sent me back without warning and without seeing Izzy.

The band poured into the warm two-story home, breathing a sigh of relief as they protected themselves from Seattle's cold air.

"Hi." I waved and smiled at everyone of them

“Hey Maddy!" Slash and Steven grinned eagerly, the only drink in their system at the moment being coke, a fizzy beverage heavy in sugar, contributing to their hyper behavior.

The boys had agreed to appear sober at the McKagan home so that Maddy's mother would have the best impression of them all.

Especially Izzy.

And there he stood, as tall as ever, with his black coat, slim jeans, and straight black hair.

I waited for him to get to me first, but he quickly moved past me and straight to Duff, who was conversing with my mother.

“Hey.” a voice said, snapping me out of my current haze of conclusion.

“Hi Axl.”

“How are you?.”

"I'm fine. I just wanted to thank you for being there for me that night."

“I'll always be there for you," he said, moving in close enough for me to look up into his eyes.

“Boys I made you all dinner, come eat." My mother yelled, making me jolt from the conversation with Axl, as the boys gathered around the dinner table like starved men, with Duff at one end of the long wooden table and my mother at the other, leaving me in between Izzy and Axl.

Slash and Steven were in front of us, sending me smirks, winks, and obscene gestures implying a threesome, which my mother did not appreciate

"Is there anything I should know?" she questioned the two of them, who dropped their grins and shook their heads no.

“Izzy, was it?…That’s your name young man?”

“Yes ma’am.”

“Okay...., well, my daughter here, tells me that you both love each other.”

“Mom!" I cringed as I felt his stare from the corner of my eyes.

“Yes…uh I do.”

“If you want to be with my daughter then you'll have to get married." she demanded.

The entire table, including Axl, burst out laughing as if it was the best joke they'd ever heard, leaving a sour taste in my mouth.

“Alright, gentlemen. It was a joke; now settle down and enjoy your lasagne.”

“Izzy, based on what I've seen, you appear to be an intelligent man. And the fact that you appear to be making my daughter upset because you aren't here, I'd say I want my daughter out of her pain, and I approve of you being with Maddy." she said, making all the boys except Axl erupt in cheers.

The night went well despite Izzy still ignoring me, and my mother even spent some time with Izzy alone so they could bond before calling it a night, while I felt a little overstimulated and walked upstairs to my room.

Izzy P.O.V

“Your mom loves me." I smirked and slumped into the couch in the living room, where the other boys were also watching cartoons.

“I’m surprised. My mother is generally quite protective of Maddy, but I think she saw something in you she liked." Duff said, glad to have given his best friend another chance after seeing how far he went to impress his little sister.

“Where’s Maddy?” I asked, looking around and seeing no sign of the young girl who I had sat next to, during dinner.

“I think she went upstairs to her room.” the bassist mumbled, yawning as his eyes focused on the cartoon Slash and Steven were watching.

I traveled upstairs searching for Maddy’s room when I spotted a door slightly creaked and light pink walls peeking through.

I was about to knock but fuck it, I just walked in and closed the door behind me locking it.

“Get out.” she grumbled, huddled on her side while hugging one of her stuffed animals.

“Maddy-.”

“You ignored me the whole day.”

“I was just trying to impress your mom.”

“By ignoring me.” she scoffed, feeling her eyes sting of tears.

“Baby I’m sorry.” I cooed, coming up to cuddle her in bed.

“I waited for you the whole day and even dressed up for you to see a-and you didn’t even c-care.” she exhaled shakily, brushing away tears with the back of her hands.

“Fuck Maddy. I’m not good at this shit y’know, this is my first time introducing myself to a girl’s parents.” I sighed sitting up against the headboard of her white and pink bed.

She turned over, with her tear stained cheeks.

“And I’m sorry about the way I treated you at the bar. I know that was fucked up. I care about you so fucking much, I never stop thinking about you.” I told her, holding her chin in my grasp, to raise her head up towards me.

“As long as you’re here that’s all that matters…I guess.” she whispered curling into me.

I caressed her hair till she fell asleep on me, then tucked her into her blanket and turned off the light, letting her lamp illuminate the room.

I ran across Axl as I was leaving her room, who gave me a strange look and asked what I was doing in her room after the argument at the bar.

“You don’t deserve her Izzy. And you know that too.” he told the rhythm guitarist.

“You think your any better.” I scoffed eyeing the arrogant asshole who used to be my best friend once upon a time.

“I know I’m not a good person but I don’t pretend like I am, unlike you.” he spat pushing me on the way to the guest room to which he slammed the door.

“Prick.” I muttered going down the stairs, seeing Duff, Steven and Slash all passed out on the couch.

Great. Where do I sleep.

Slash and Steven had taken up one whole couch and Duff’s height took up one single couch alone, leaving me with the couch chair that was not comfortable in the slightest.

I went back upstairs, contemplating whether I should knock on the guest room door and humiliate myself in front of Axl by begging him to allow me share the guest bedroom or knock on Maddy's door

So I took the better option and went into Maddy's room, closing the door and slipping into bed with her beneath her comforter.

“I-Izzy?" She whispered, half drowsy, as she noticed flashes of black garments in front of her half-closed eyes.

"I’m sleeping with you tonight. Axl is being a bitch." I grunted, slipping off my shirt due to the heat, leaving me shirtless and pantless, since I always slept in my boxers.

“M’kay.” she whispered, cuddling into my body, replacing her stuffed bunny with my body.

“Night.” I said giving her a kiss on the head.

“Mhm…n-nigh-t.” she replied groggily before we both drifted off into a deep sleep underneath her pink soft comforters and the illuminating light of her lamp in the quiet room which would be the complete opposite the next morning.

Conflicted Chapter 27🎀:

Maddy P.O.V

The drive home from the concert was, to put it mildly, awful. I had no idea if I would be able to heal from the heartbreak I was currently experiencing.

I recalled hearing my friends talk about how heartbroken they were when they broke up with their lovers for the first time back in school, but I never realized how terrible it hurt until today.

But now I knew I had to stay away from L.A. for as long as possible in order to purge any memories of Izzy or anyone else from that band.

For sure I was going to miss Slash and Steven, but I honestly didn't want anything to do with them, and the best thing for me right now was to entirely disconnect from the group.

To tell the truth, I wasn't even sure if I wanted to see my brother again because he was the cause of everything that had gone wrong today, but it wouldn't have changed Izzy's decision to stay even if my brother had not said anything.

I guess I was rather irritated because my brother pointed out that Izzy did not love me enough to leave the band, which was not his fault.I suppose I was just a dumb young girl after all.

Axl P.O.V

To say I was upset at Maddy's decision to leave was an understatement, given that she was one of the rare girls I had met who, on occasions, I imagined having a true relationship with because she appeared to be and was different than every other girl I would stumble upon, who just slept around.

I knew she and Izzy were going to break up eventually, which is why I was trying to help her come to a swift decision, but instead she lashed out at me. If only she know I was only trying to help her, because, I didn't believe that Izzy would be as faithful as he appeared in front of her while she was away back home when we went on tour soon.

I've known him long enough to know that when he gets bored on the road, he likes to have company, specifically Pamela, and I knew Pamela was here for a reason, but when she saw Maddy, she became reluctant and backed off, not that Izzy was going to stop her advances regardless.

Izzy clearly cared about the girl, but I had the impression that he did not get along with her as well as I did. I believe we had something more unique than him, and I sensed it from the moment I met her.

“Bastard.”

“What?” I scoffed.

“I’m letting you know one last time to back off my girl.”

“Your girl?…Please, I saw you practically smoothing on Pam.” I scoffed.

“Oh man. Don’t act all innocent like you wouldn’t entertain it if a girl was coming into you, especially if they looked like Pam.” he retorted.

“Not if I had a girl like Maddy as my girlfriend.” I responded by immediately walking away from him, unable to handle being around him any longer without wanting to hit him square in the nose.

He followed after me, quickly, spinning me around roughly by my shoulder.

“The fuck.” I spat, shoving his hand.

“Listen motherfucker. Stay the hell away from my fucking personal life.” he roared, his eyes popping out, nostrils flared, and face flushed crimson with anger.

“No, you stay away from her.” I spit, getting in his face to let him know that I wasn’t intimidated.

“You just want to fuck her.”

“I already did.” I smirked, watching his face scrunch up with pure hatred.

“Your a piece of shit Axl.”

“You’re the one who was ready to take your pants off for a few quick seconds with Miss Pam.”

“You don’t know me.”

“I know you better than I know anyone.”

“…..If you think Maddy is in love with you than good luck.” he snickered, walking back to the dressing room smugly.

… … …

The next morning we awoke in Los Angeles. After such a lengthy absence, I was pleased to return to the city. But it didn't feel the same now that Maddy wasn’t here.

The city felt very different, a cold and lonely feeling she left behind, when her brother decided it was best for her to leave her, as for, Iz, to my surprise he was taking it hard and attempting to cope his feelings with whatever substances he sought.

Everyone was concerned about Iz and his recurring drug problems; not that they didn't have their own, but Izzy would usually take the most harsh substances and wind up messed up, which was bad for him and the band.

Duff and I weren't very concerned, though, because, well, for one, he had been too angry to care about his best friend’s drug problem, and he was still angry at his younger sister.

As for myself, I was in love with the girl the guy had broken up with, so I didn’t have a reason to care.

I sighed as I got out of bed and decided it was a good time to call Maddy and see what was going on with her. I grabbed my phone book and began searching through names and numbers to find Maddy's in order to get ahold of her before a drunken Izzy called her and professed his love over the phone only to wake up the next morning and never call her again.

After losing hope, I couldn't think of elsewhere to go until I came across for familiar name of her mother which was Alice.

It was definitely her mother, it had her home address on it.

I quickly grabbed a pen and scribbled down the phone number to the home address, and then hiding it somewhere Izzy couldn't get to, if he came over, and punched in the numbers, carefully punching in the numbers, picking up the device attached to the long spiral cord.

Brrrr

Brrrr

Br-

“Hello? Alice speaking.”

“Mrs. Mckagan, It’s Axl.”

“Oh, what a surprise! How are you doing honey?” her mother cheerfully asked.

“I’m good.” I chuckled.

“I was wondering if I could speak with Maddy by any chance?”

I wondered if she had told her mother what occurred that night.

"Oh, sure…..but, make sure Izzy isn’t around. I don't want him around her after seeing how upset she was the night I picked her up after their fight that night. She wouldn't even speak to me." she sighed, adjusting the phone cable to conceal the sound and signaling for Maddy to come down to answer the phone call.

“Hello?”

“Maddy….Its Axl.”

“I’m aware.”

“I wanted to ask how your doing and all y’know after tha-

“Good.” she interrupted, rather irritated that the touchy subject was brought up.

“Look, I was wondering if you would come visit me in L.A.?”

“Are you crazy!”

"My brother has basically blacklisted me from there, and I don't think I want to be around Izzy," she explained, her face sour at the mention of her now ex-boyfriend.

“Who gives a shit. You’re old enough to make your own goddamn decision.”

“And y’know, I was hopping maybe we could talk?” I added.

“Talk?”

“Yes.”

“Hm….so, what about?”

“Us.”

“There is no us Axl.” she huffed.

“Why do you just shut me off everytime the topic of us comes around?”

"I appreciate how much you care about me Axl but I think I need a break to think about everything before I decide to get into another relationship." she sighed.

I love you.

“But y’know how I feel about yo-

“I love you.”

The silence on the other line made me regret what I had said, but then she responded quickly with...

“I love you too.”

(short & sweet chapter …this series will end at 30 chapters so this is mostly a filler ! :))))

Eddie Malluk 📸

crushing on my mans pt.2 😇😇

Mean Girls (2004) dir. Mark Waters

Conflicted : Pt. 2🎀

Izzy P.O.V

"So..how long is your sister staying with you?"

"Why?" he asked narrowing his eyes towards me.

"She's 16 Izzy and Maddy is my baby sis. So it'll never happen." Duff remarked rolling his eyes and scoffing at me.

"Chill man. I was just curious." I replied nonchalantly.

"I've been staying with Angela and she's been a real pain in the ass lately."

"It's only a matter of time before she gets enough of me and throws me to the curb." I groaned slumping further into the couch.

"You know you're welcome here anytime Iz . But my sis is taking the guest room so I guess you could take the couch." he shrugged getting off the couch to get some water.

Maddy P.O.V

I woke up in the middle of the night to some noise out in the living room.

I groaned and got out of bed to tell Duff to shut up but instead I saw someone I didn't expect.

"Izzy?" I softly called out.

"Hey Maddy. Sorry did I wake you?" he asked peeking up from the guitar he was lightly strumming.

"No it's okay." I stupidly grinned even though he did indeed wake me up.

Whenever Izzy was around I always went dumb like a schoolgirl with a silly crush.

That’s probably how he saw me anyways.

"I couldn't sleep so I thought I would play some notes to finish this fucking song for Axl.”

Axl…as in Axl Rose the lead singer of Guns N’ Roses.

I had met Axl along with Izzy when Duff formally introduced me to all of them the day I arrived in L.A and the first one to introduce himself was Axl.

He was extremely flirty but I couldn’t tell if he was like that with everyone or just to me.

I couldn’t help but get giddy since I hadn’t ever gotten any attention from anyone at school since they all thought I weird just because I was shy and quiet.

Being around the guys boosted my self confidence and made me feel like I was pretty and wanted.

Something I also felt around Izzy.

I came around to where he was sitting forgetting that I was in the same pajamas he had seen when he first came.

"Shit." I giggled.

"What's wrong?" he asked looking at me with a big grin.

"My clothes aren't really appropriate." I quickly muttered pulling my pajama shorts down to cover my ass.

"I don't mind Maddy." Izzy shrugged wondering why she kept repeating herself.

He thought she looked sexy.

"How long will you be staying with us till?" I asked.

"Probably not too long."

"You can stay here as long as you need. I'm sure Duff won't mind." I said giving him a soft smile.

"Just to see that smile I might extend my stay here." he grinned not forgetting to look me up and down.

"Izzy...my brother-

"Chill Maddy. You're basically like a little sister to me and besides your 16." he nonchalantly shrugged.

Is he being serious right now?

He’s only like 3 years older than me since I’ll be turning 17 soon. That's practically nothing!

"Izzy you're only 3 years older than me technically since I’m turning 17 soon. It's not even that big of a deal." I unintentionally whined as my bottom lip pouted.

He saw that and smirked.

"Little Mckagan thinks she's grown." he joked giving me a similar pout to mock me.

"Come on Maddy. Be real. You're a fucking child." he spat out quite harshly.

"If I’m a child than what are these." I spat back yanking up my overly tight pajama top and exposing my bigger than normal breast.

"Maddy I-" he stopped when he looked and saw my hands holding my breasts together.

"Fuck." he muttered placing his hand over his crotch to hide any evidence of a growing buldge.

"Get out of here Maddy."

"Why. You’re the one who’s staying in Duff’s apartment. I should be the one to tell you to leave.” I retorted yanking my shirt back down and crossing my arms.

“What’s your deal?” he asked giving me a questionable look.

“You know how Duff feels about me hanging around you alone or any of the other guys.”

“Especially Axl.”

“Why does Duff have to control who I can and cannot talk to.” I huffed getting up from the couch and stomping back to my room.

“Don’t know ask him.” he silently muttered before laying down on the couch to sleep.

As I closed the door behind me I let out a squeal of frustration.

“I totally embarrassed myself out there.”

“I don’t even know what got over me to flash him. I’ve never been that bold to any guy in my life. Hell I don’t even talk to any boys anyways!”

“Whatever!” I thought climbing into my white comforter and calling it a night.

hope u all enjoyed🎀💞💘

Conflicted Chapter 31:

Maddy P.O.V

“I love you so much baby.” Izzy groaned as he rammed into me continuously, rocking the bed by his speed.

“I love you t-too.” I whimpered feeling my orgasm about to take over.

“Your never gonna leave me again right?”

Not even for him?” he whined almost pleading me to answer.

l was too euphoric to mutter a response as I felt Izzy sucking the sensitive parts of my neck.

Leaving them all bruised and purple.

“Say something Maddy please.” he urged not letting himself release until he heard exactly what he wanted from me.

“Yes. It’s you Izzy. It’s always been you.” I croaked looking up at him, pouting and seeing his hazel eyes that I missed so much.

He leaned in and gave me the sloppiest kiss, leaving strings of wetness as he pulled away and came inside of me making sure I took every last drop.

“Such a good girl f’me huh.” he said giving my ass a slap and plopping down beside me.

I quickly covered myself feeling sudden shame from being naked like this inside of a trailer with Izzy knowing my brother still wasn’t talking to me and here I was slutting it up with one of his best friends.

“What’s wrong?” Izzy asked as he sat up, grabbing his pants and slipping them on, letting them hang loosely around his waist as he let up a fresh cigarette.

“I feel guilty for doing this while Duff is still ignoring me.” I sighed feeling my lips pout and tears silently rolling down my cheek.

“Your grown enough to make your own decisions Maddy.”

“If Duff doesn’t approve he needs to get over it.” he replied gruffly.

“I know but he’s my brother Izzy. If he’s upset then it affects me too.” I replied angrily.

“Why are you being such a little girl over it. I didn’t get with you to handle your tantrums.”

“Why are you being so mean.” I huffed wiping my tear stained cheeks and climbing off the bed to confront him face to face.

“I’m not. I just think you’re overly sensitive and I don’t want to deal with a cry baby post fuck.” he casually responded letting out a cloud of smoke as he ran a hand through his black locks.

“You’re such a jerk.” I cried pushing him out of my way to exit the trailer.

I didn’t even know where to go since all the boys including my brother were rehearsing backstage so I just waited outside feeling helplessly guiltier by the second.

I was just another idiot who decided to sneak away with Izzy back into his bed. I didn’t even wanna leave my brother while he was practicing his drums because I planned on talking to him once and for all to figure things out.

But instead he caught a glimpse of Izzy kissing all over my neck while gripping my ass as we both snuck away to go to his trailer which I doubt my brother didn’t know of.

I heard the trailer door open and close.

Izzy came out to let me know he was going back to rehearse with the boys and asked if I wanted to join.

“I don’t feel comfortable being near you while you’re mad at me.” I retorted rolling my eyes at him like the dumb little girl I was.

I wasn’t even that much younger than him.

It was only a 6 year gap which he made seem like it was ages apart.

Twenty five and Nineteen weren’t that far apart.

Right?

“Come on. You know Duff will kill me for leaving you all alone out here.” he groaned.

“You don’t even care about me.” I said feeling utterly rejected at that point.

He came over towards me in long strides and pulled me up harshly by my arms placing of his arms on my lower back squishing me all the way into him while having the other hand on my cheek.

“What don’t you understand Maddy. I don’t act this way with any girl.”

“I don’t even have any emotions towards the girls I fuck or that try and talk to me.”

“You make me feel so many different emotions at once I don’t know how to act sometimes. I know I shout at you but I really feel something for you that I’ve never felt with any girl which drives me crazy especially when Duff says I can’t be around you.”

“I’m so in love with you. I want to fuck you and make love to you at the same time all the damn time. I want to kiss you everywhere when I see you. You’re always so fucking beautiful and sexy. And you have the sweetest personality which is the total opposite of me. You’re so fucking nice it kills me sometimes because I could never be that nice to you but that’s why I want to be around you all the time because you pull me in with your sweetness. You make me feel so good about myself, like someone genuinely cares for me.”

“God I wish I could fuck you right here against this trailer so everyone can see how much I want to make you mine.” he grunted swiping his tongue on my lips until I parted them feeling his tongue against mine.

“Izzz. Someone will see us.” I giggled against his kisses.

“That’s what makes it so fun baby.” he groaned grabbing my legs to wrap around his waist as he grinded his erection against me.

The parking lot where all the bands had parked their trailers was silent expect for small “uh, uh, uh.” whimpers that left my mouth like a chorus.

Izzy had me pinned against GNR’s trailer with my tiny skirt hiked up, rubbing my pussy up and down his clothed erection keeping my legs tightly gripped.

“Give it to me baby. Cream all over my fucking pants.” he grunted pinning me against the trailer further to help grip me as I bounced up and down feeling my pussy get slicker with the friction of his jeans.

“Izzy?”

“Is that you man?” Duff barked as he saw me looking disheveled and seeing my ass out as I bounced up and down Izzy.

“S-stop stop. Put me down Iz .” I gasped slightly out of breath due to the nature of our activities.

“I’m gonna fucking murder you.” my brother muttered watching as I fixed my clothes into place while Izzy readjusted himself in his pants rolling his eyes.

“It’s not like she didn’t want it Duff.” he said shaking him off.

“Fuck you motherfucker.” was the last thing Izzy heard as he fell to the ground.

authors note

wht did we think :)) i’m back! i’ve been rlly busy w school so apologies!

Are you going to write more chapters for the conflicted series?

yes my love i am working on it , i actually rewrote chapter 32 although it’s not finished it’s in my drafts since im on summer break now. but i want yall to decide wht i should do next since i have no clues.

Conflicted Ch 30🎀:

Maddy sat at the edge of the bed, contemplating her thoughts.

After Izzy had cornered Maddy, Axl came to see how everything was going and invited Maddy to come talk with him about something serious after he left her hanging downstairs. She politely declined and left to go in the empty media room where the tv was playing an ongoing loop of everything Guns N’ Roses.

But her eyes were fixated on the tall bassist and fiery redhead. Her chest tightening as she watched them.

Izzy turned, his dark hair catching the rays of the stage light, and it was almost as if his eyes found hers through the screen.

Even from the television, Maddy felt the pull of him, the magnetic force that had drawn her in since she came out here for the first time.

His quiet confidence. And the way he always seemed to know what was going on with her, whenever she couldn’t.

But then there was Axl.

Loud, brash and impossible to ignore.

Maddy dropped her gaze, her thoughts spiraling back to the moments that had brought her here, stuck between two boys who couldn’t be more different………

Flashback: 2 months ago

The first time Izzy kissed her, they were sitting in the room of her brothers apartment. It was a hot summer night, the air thick with the scent of honeysuckle. They’d spent hours talking about everything and nothing, their legs dangling over each others.

“You ever think about the future?” Izzy had asked, his voice soft, almost hesitant.

“Sometimes,” Maddy had replied, brushing a strand of hair from her face. “But it feels so far away, you know?”

Izzy had nodded, his gaze fixed on the ceiling, littered with glowing stars. Then he turned to her, his eyes searching hers. “I think about it a lot. And you’re always in it.”

Before she could respond, he leaned in, his lips brushing hers. It was tentative, sweet, and it made her heart race in a way nothing else ever had.

Maddy blinked, the memory fading as the present came rushing back. She glanced toward Izzy again, her heart aching. Things had been so simple back then. But now, everything was complicated.

Ever since Duff had found out, it had been nothing short of a rollercoaster of emotions tearing through her heart every single night.

Axl’s laugh broke through her thoughts, drawing her attention. He was leaning against the frame of the now opened door, his arms crossed, his signature smirk firmly in place.

And then there was Axl.., painfully arrogant, a whirlwind of ego wrapped in leather and chaos, his voice cutting through the air as sharply as his unapologetic self-importance.

But even in his world of glittering façades and hollow adoration, he couldn’t ignore her—the one who was real in a sea of fake smiles and fame-chasers. She saw through the noise, and for the first time, he found himself craving something deeper than the spotlight…..

Flashback to Duff’s apartment……..

It had been a chaotic party at Duff’s, the kind of party where the music was too loud and the air smelled like cheap beer and perfume. Maddy had been standing in the kitchen, nursing a soda, when Axl had appeared beside her.

“Not your scene, huh?” he’d said, leaning casually against the counter.

“Not really,” she’d admitted, glancing around the crowded room.

Axl had grinned, his green eyes sparkling with mischief. “Come on, then. Let’s get out of here.”

Before she could protest, he’d grabbed her hand, leading her out the back door and into the night. They’d ended up at the old train tracks, sitting on the hood of his car and talking until the sky turned pink with dawn.

“You’re not like other girls,” Axl had said, his voice low. “You’re… real.”

Maddy had laughed, shaking her head. “What does that even mean?”

“It means you don’t pretend to be someone you’re not,” he’d replied, his gaze intense. “And I like that about you.”

Now, as she sat on the worn down sofa, Maddy felt the weight of those memories pressing down on her. She cared about both of them, but in such different ways.

Izzy represented safety, the kind of love that felt like home. He was the boy who knew her favorite book, who remembered the little things that no one else did. Even when he would hurt her the little things he would do for her would make up for it.

But Axl… Axl was fire. He made her feel alive in a way that was both exhilarating and terrifying.

Maddy sat on the couch, legs curled beneath her, staring blankly at the muted television. The room was dim, lit only by the faint glow of the screen and the warm light of a nearby lamp. She wasn’t watching anything in particular; her mind was too cluttered with thoughts to focus. The weight of the situation bore down on her, pressing against her chest like an invisible hand.

The creak of the door broke her trance. She didn’t have to look up to know who it was. She felt his presence before she even saw him. Axl stood there, leaning casually against the doorframe, his leather jacket still on, as if he hadn’t decided whether he was staying or leaving. His eyes, sharp and unwavering, bore into her, but she refused to meet them.

“I know you see me,” he said, his voice cutting through the silence. “But you’re choosing to ignore me.” He stepped further into the room, his boots heavy against the wooden floor. “The problem won’t go away just because you’re pretending it doesn’t exist, Maddy.”

Still, she didn’t respond. Her fingers tightened slightly around the edge of the couch cushion, but her gaze remained fixed on the television.

Axl sighed, running a hand through his disheveled hair. “You’re making this harder than it has to be,” he muttered, his tone softer now, almost pleading.

Before she could muster a response, another figure appeared in the doorway. Izzy. His presence was less imposing, quieter, but no less intense. His dark eyes flicked between Maddy and Axl, and a faint smirk tugged at the corner of his lips.

“You’re not helping, Axl,” Izzy said, stepping into the room. He crossed the space to Maddy’s side and crouched down in front of her, his tone gentle, almost tender. “Hey,” he murmured, reaching for her hand. “You don’t have to say anything. I know this is a lot, but I just want you to know how much I care about you. How much I love you.”

Maddy finally looked up, her eyes meeting Izzy’s. There was a softness there, a vulnerability that made her chest ache. He squeezed her hand lightly, as if grounding her in the moment.

Axl scoffed from across the room, his arms crossed over his chest. “That’s your pitch, Izzy? Sweet words and puppy-dog eyes? You think that’s enough?” He took a step closer, his voice growing sharper. “I’m more of a man than you’ll ever be. At least I own up to my mistakes. I don’t hide behind pretty words.”

Izzy didn’t flinch. He stayed focused on Maddy, his expression calm and resolute. “This isn’t about being a man, Axl. It’s about what she needs. And she doesn’t need someone who’s going to bulldoze their way through her life.”

Maddy inhaled deeply, finally finding her voice. “Stop,” she said, her tone firm but not unkind. She looked at Axl, her expression pained but resolute. “I can’t do this anymore. I care about you, Axl, but this… this isn’t right for me. I need to move on. We both do.”

Axl’s jaw tightened, his eyes flashing with a mix of frustration and hurt. He opened his mouth to argue but stopped himself. Instead, he nodded stiffly, his lips pressing into a thin line. Without another word, he turned and walked out, the door clicking shut behind him.

Maddy exhaled, her shoulders sagging with the release of tension. Izzy sat beside her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. “You okay?” he asked softly.

“I don’t know.” she croaked thinking about the consequences of her actions.

“Hey, don’t worry about him okay?” Izzy groaned.

“I can’t just not worry about him Izzy!” she sternly replied.

“Why not?” he harshly asked.

“Because I care for him a lot.” was the last thing she said before getting up and leaving out the door.

authors note: thinking about ending this at 35!!