No But For Real

5th wheel Izzy is my spirit animal

Slaxl, Stuff , and Forever Alone Izzy.

she thin on my duke til I white

Michelle

part 4 (a)

a/n: well ive been putting this off for ages x

warnings: uh idk just read with caution i cant fucking remember, kinda hinted sexual stuff, CLIFFHANGER 🏋🏽‍♂️

part 3

Weeks had passed. Nothing had happened. Although Izzy was starting to feel used the more he was with Axl. Slash avoided Axl like the plague, but when he couldn't, Axl would show off Izzy in the most intimate ways. From an outsiders perspective, they simply looked like newfound lovers. But in reality, they were never intimate unless Slash was around.

Slash decided to spend all of his time with Nat. She had been going out on dates with Michelle, who Slash still hadn't met. Until today.

Michelle was this tan, curly black haired girl who was much taller than both of them. She was stunning, like a model. "You're Slash?" Michelle asks. He nods. Michelle laughs, "what kind of name is Slash?" He glares at her, was she stupid? Or was she just trying to be irritating?

Slash immediately didn't like her. She had this strange vibe. He didn't like it. "It's a nickname, actually. My name's Saul, but everyone calls me Slash. You will too," he says. Nat gives him a look as if to say 'what are you doing?'. Michelle gives him a strange look, "I will too?" She asks. Slash nods, "only people I'm close with call me Saul." Slash states, quite bluntly, but he doesn't care. There's something off about this woman.

Throughout their lunch period, Slash notices several things wrong with Michelle. They were in a secluded area, so they didn't have to hide from anyone.

Multiple times, Nat tried to kiss Michelle, and each time, it ended up as a peck on the cheek, seemingly by accident. Slash knew better.

Nat would try to hold her hand or put her arm around her, and Michelle would come up with a different excuse to get up momentarily.

Michelle had mentioned all of her past ex boyfriends. Boyfriends. Not a single girlfriend.

Michelle was friends with some of the most popular people in school, including the two guys who had attacked Slash after he was outed.

When lunch was over, Michelle hurried off way too quickly for Slash's liking. "What the fuck is wrong with you?!" Nat asks, punching him in the arm. Slash lets out a pained sound, "Owwwhat?!" He glares at her, rubbing his arm. "You were so rude to her! What was that about?!" She looked genuinely angry at him, which worried him. She was completely manipulated by this girl.

Slash sighs, deciding to tell her the truth, "I don't trust her, Nat." She glares at him, "what do you mean? You only just met her!" Slash groans, "She had an off vibe! There's something she's hiding, something she's keeping from you! I mean, did you not see how many times she shot you down when you tried to hold hands, or kiss, or hug, or do anything remotely couple like?" Nat sighs, "she's new to the school! She doesn't know it like we do. She was probably scared of getting caught!"

Slash takes a deep breath, "just be careful around her, please? She's friends with the most popular people in school so just be careful, okay?" Nat rolls her eyes, "fine." She decides to tell him what he wants to hear, even with no real intention of 'being careful'.

Nat hurries off to class before he can say anything else. Slash sighs. He turns around to go to his own class and bumps into Izzy. He panics slightly and mentally prepares himself for a scene in front of everyone. Instead, Izzy looks at him, "hey, sorry man. Didn't see you turning," he shrugs and walks on. He wasn't trying to be rude and Slash could tell.

Slash follows him with his eyes. Izzy seemed like a genuinely nice, laid-back guy who he could probably get along with well. The only problem was Axl. Izzy was being used. Slash almost felt bad for him until he saw Axl grabbing him once again in suggestive ways to piss Slash off and still keep their relationship hidden.

Slash stands there staring at them. For some reason, this particular moment really angered him.

Izzy smiled nervously at Axl and said something to him before walking off to class. Axl starts walking in a different direction. Slash decides to follow him, knowing he was skipping his last two classes of the day.

They get to the tree when Slash loses his temper, "what the fuck is wrong with you!? What are you trying to do!?" Axl stops and turns to look at him, "you creep, did you follow me here?" Slash nods, "yeah, I did. I'm sick of this. Why are you using that guy? What's he done to you? Nothing! You're just trying to piss me off! You're hurt because of what I said and did, and I get that, but that doesn't mean you get to use someone else! He's a person too, and he seems like a genuinely nice guy, and he doesn't deserve to be absolutely flat out miserable with you, knowing he means nothing to you! And what's worse is i can tell you originally just wanted to hang out with him but for some reason your sick and fucking twisted mind decided he would be the perfect 'thing' to use for the sole purpose of trying to piss me off and it's not fair! It's not fucking fair, Ax!"

Axl stands there, completely dumbfounded. Slash storms off before letting Axl reply. He walks around for a while before realising he hasn't eaten. He walks to Natalie's dad's diner to get food. He stays there until the end of the school day before walking back to school because he still wants to take Nat home.

He sees her walking hurriedly to the gate and grabs her arm, "hey, where are you going?" She looks up at him, "home?" Slash glares at her, "why are you in such a rush?"

"I'm meeting Michelle at her place. I need to go home and get ready!" She exclaims, Slash sighs, "alright, well, let me give you a ride, yeah?" Nat nods, "okay."

Slash gives her a ride back to her place and waits while she gets herself dolled up, then drops her off at Michelle's. He watches her walk in with the worst anxiety. Somethings not right.

For the first time, Michelle and Nat actually share a kiss. Which quickly turns into a heavy makeout session. And then stripping. But only Nat. But she doesn't realise. Michelle does everything she can to turn her into a worked up and excited mess.

She has her layer out, 'ready for her'. It's gonna happen, Nat thinks to herself. Michelle excuses herself to grab something that she claims is very important, which only fuels her excitement. After a while, she comes back.

"Is that a camera..?"

(origins)Victor Creed anti-discrimination rant #369

So, for the amount of hate Origins gets just for how they portrayed deadpool, guess what?! He gets a funkopop and jimmy gets a funkopop, and everyone gets a funkopop - but no, not Vic.

Why bother, amiright? VictorCreedwho? Ruggedmancat bar scene where? Prowly darkcoated catmanwho?

At least a Vic to go with this Jimmy. It could've been nice. Just a reminder how nice, below:

You are not hard to love (Nikki x Tommy)

A/N: Spiritual sequel to this one but can be read as stand alone too. I’m always super insecure about posting my fic here because to my brain they just suck ™

Summary:  Recovery isn’t easy and Nikki knew it, but fuck he didn’t expect to be so hard. Especially he didn’t expected to feel like he was poison his sweet Tommy.

The rain was falling down slowly and Nikki loved that. He always found it relaxing almost comforting meanwhile Tommy hated when it was raining, everything was too dark and gloomy for him.

Hearing the little drops falling down always helped the bassist to sleep better, but this time it wasn’t enough. His mind has been tormenting him all day and the cravings got so much worse, during the AA meeting the therapist told him that he used drugs to escape from his past. Heroin made him numb and gave him the illusion to have control over his haunting memories.

So many people believed in the “ they can get better for me” fairytale when their partner decides to get clean but that’s nothing easy when it comes to that, life isn’t peaches and cream… addictions don’t go away just like that, and most importantly you have to get better for yourself first.

Just because he went to rehab and now he was going to AA meetings it didn’t mean he still didn’t get cravings. Actually right now it was even worse because he was digging down to the core and he couldn’t use anything to distract himself.

Just him and his past.

Shame and guilt were constantly haunting him since that night after his death, when Tommy broke down in his arms. Tommy, the poor boy had to put up with him every day and he had no idea how many times he kept the drummer wake because he needed to be comforted after a nightmare, or how many times he held his hair while he was puking ( sometimes he even puked on the poor Tommy), he lost count of all the times he hugged him when he was freezing.

He noticed how Tommy wanted to help him and how sad he was to see him struggling, but he was no superhero he couldn’t always rescue him even if in Nikki’s eyes he was his savior.

Almost as Tommy could hear his thoughts he heard him walking into the living room, hugging Nikki from behind.

“Baby it’s early, what are you doing awake?” The bassist asked surprised, Tommy was anything but an early bird.

“It’s raining and I can’t sleep if you are not hugging me, you know that. Why are you still awake?” He gently started to rub circles on Nikki’s back.

“ I couldn’t sleep, you know rain calms me…”

“Polar opposites I guess, you love it and I hate it”

Nikki couldn’t help but smile a little, however the guilt came back quickly. It wasn’t only that it felt like he was poisoning the younger man, forcing him to live one of the worst experience of his life just because he loved the bassist.

Tommy was happy and bubbly, easily excited and a child at heart meanwhile Nikki was just a fucked up, a junkie coming from a broken home who never knew what love was until he met Tommy. Why  was he even bothering wasting his time with him? He was damaged goods… too broken to be repaired.

Sure he was taking his life back together but he knew he was bound to fail.

“Why are you doing this Tommy?” Nikki whispered loud enough for Tommy to hear him.

“Doing what?”

“Keep putting up with me, why?” He looked so confused, it wasn’t possible for him that somebody cared for him like that.

“ I already told you Nikki…” Tommy always tried to deviate the conversation but Nikki was sick of this, his brain was filled with self-hatred and he felt the anger raising.

“ No Tommy I don’t fucking know it because you always avoid telling me!” He scoffed.

Irritability. It was a constant, the cravings made him angry and not being able to have control made him frustrated, unfortunately most of the time Tommy was the victim of his wrath. See? Another fucking reason to leave him for good.

He was a lunatic out of his mind and the hurt look on Tommy’s face made him sick. Fucking cunt, what the fuck are you doing?!

“What do you want me to do, leave you alone like everyone else did? Shouldn’t you have learned by now that you can’t push me away?!”

His voice was firm and his grip tightened around Nikki almost as he was scared the bassist could run away.

“Don’t you fucking get it? If you stay with me I’m going to break you! Don’t you see the mess I’m now? It will only get worse and you’re going to get stuck with a mental case!”

Those words were filled with venom, it was so easy for him to get angry at himself almost comforting in a twisted way because that’s what he was used to, being comforted and helped didn’t feel right. That’s why he pushed Tommy away, to prevent to get hurt and feeling all the emotions he was hiding.

“If you think that getting away from you is going to help me in any way, then you must have forgotten how bad I was feeling when you came back from the hospital.”

Nikki couldn’t forget it even if he tried. The dead light in Tommy’s eyes, he tears on his cheeks, when he confessed that we wanted to be dead if Nikki wasn’t alive anymore. There was no way out, he either hurt Tommy by being with him or by leaving him.

“You’re not a waste of time” Tommy said it like it was the easiest thing ever and Nikki wanted to scream because these were just lies.

“Don’t…”

“You are not too hard to love, you deserve love”

No no, I fucking don’t! Everybody shoved me that I don’t, every single person who was supposed to love me didn’t! How could you say that?!

“ I fucking love you. I chose to be with you and I choose you, all of you even the painful parts, even the parts you think are fucked up.” Tommy’s heart was pounding, scared to have pushed things too far and Nikki’s silence was just adding more anxiety.

The bassist lift his gaze but he was absolutely terrified until he felt a tiny tear falling down his cheek, without even thinking Tommy took him into his arms and Nikki melted into his embrace. He buried  his head in the other man’s chest and let it all out, Tommy was silent and he was grateful for that because words were useless right now.

“It’s okay Nikki, you can let it all out” a voice inside him said while his boyfriend was gently petting his hair.

He had no idea how much time has passed, he felt exhausted but Tommy’s arms were still holding him and his words floating in his mind.

“You are not hard to love”

“I choose you, all of you”

How was he supposed to believe that? How could Tommy say it so openly? How could he love him so easily?

“Do you want to get to bed?” Tommy asked, rubbing his back.

“ Can we… can we stay here?” Nikki felt so pathetic for asking that, he wasn’t a small child for fuck’s sake, but the drummer didn’t say anything, just stretched his arm and grabbed a blanket to put over them.

The sound of the rain and Tommy’s steady heartbeat calmed him down enough to close his eyes. He took his boyfriend’s hand in his and spoke to him.

“Tommy”

“Uh?!”

“ I love you so fucking much. You are the best thing happened to me” It was a whisper but he knew Tommy heard it.

“ You are not alone, I won’t leave you alone”.

Tommy’s voice was firm and even if Nikki’s trust issues made him doubt he knew his boyfriend really mean it. He stuck with him even during possibly the hardest period of his life, so why would he leave when things would get easier?

Maybe he just had to let himself go, let Tommy and his love get inside him without any fear.

“You won’t hurt me?” It was a desperate whisper but he needed to know.

“ I won’t hurt you Nikki, I promise.”

Nikki looked him in the eyes and he knew he could believe him.

Rain Blues (Axl Rose x Slash)

Summary: Rain seems to bring out the worst memories for Slash and Axl. How would they cheer up the other?

TW: mentions of past abuse

A/N: As you voted, here's this little Slaxl fic. I really missed writing for them, it was fun to get into my hurt/comfort groove. I hope you'll like it and comments are always appreciated.

The rain started trickling down the windows around 6 am. Slash was sure about that because he had the displeasure of waking up and looking at his alarm clock, the blurry numbers being the only source of light in the dim bedroom. He stared at the droplets on the glass, imagining them to be in a race, like he had been doing since he was little. Usually he would have never been up at that time of the day, but fall always seemed to fuck up his internal clock like it did with changing the color of the leaves. The only good thing was that Axl was still sleeping, his breathing coming out soft and steady. The redhead always had problems sleeping to the point Slash got used to feeling someone tossing and turning near him, but the colder months were even more brutal to Axl' sleep cycle. But as long as there wasn't screaming involved, Slash was more than happy to let him enjoy some rest. There was no point in going back to sleep, at least not in the near future, so he got out of the bed, reached for his cigarettes and headed towards the balcony, making sure to close the door as quietly as possible. 

The crisp morning air hit him in the face, his nose wrinkling at the sudden sensation as his skin slowly got used to the wind. The city seemed to be still asleep and the rain only gave it a sinister look, which was highlighted by the gray sky and dark clouds that Slash hated so much, even if he couldn't exactly pinpoint why or maybe he didn't want to.

Without wasting more time he lit up his cigarette, at least if he had to be miserable he would have satisfied his cravings, and kept looking out. Without the obvious differences, the city reminded him of his childhood spent in London, when his parents were still together even if the weather was shitty, when he had less problems and was carefree, yet LA always warmed his heart with the excessive heat, colorful life and the dream of becoming a rockstar. Maybe he was turning into his beloved snakes that needed constant sun exposure to live.

The noise of the balcony door opening almost blended with the rain's to the point that Slash thought he might have just imagined it, however the two arms who slowly surrounded him, Axl's chin resting on his shoulder. He slowly went to position his hands over his boyfriend's but Axl flinched away.

"It's okay. No touch". Slash stated and Axl seemed content enough with the answer, keeping holding his boyfriend.

Over time the guitarist learned it was easier to treat Axl like a cat: slow movements, letting him get close and allowing him to get away if he wanted to, especially when he was silent and clingy, clear signs of Axl's mind playing tricks on him. Slash took a long drag from his cigarette, focusing his eyes on the landscape, but even if the sun was slowly rising, the sky remained gray.

"This weather fucking sucks." He wasn't surprised by the silence that followed, it would have been stupid to expect Axl to talk, however the words were just pushed out of his mouth.

He was used to being the silent one, while Axl kept talking for days, so whenever these moments happened, he always had a slight embarrassment washing over him. Without even noticing it, Slash moved his hair forward, hiding his face even if nobody could see him.

"Rain is just so fucking melancholic. I hate..." he took a pause, shifting his attention to his cigarette, "I hate this feeling."

Axl's arms seemed to get tighter around him, probably in an attempt to comfort him, then his hands started to go up and down Slash's arm smoothly. A warm, welcoming sensation formed in the guitarist's stomach, so much different from the wind brushing against his skin and it made him think a bit. Usually, whenever he felt like that, the solution was drinking a bottle of Jack or worst case scenario getting high, he never thought a hug could feel like that even after all the time he and Axl had been together.

Slowly he got used to it and he had the feeling Axl was enjoying the distraction as much as him, occasionally resting his head on Slash's shoulder a couple of times. But soon his cigarette was over and reality crushed back in, as the sky got somehow darker.

"We should probably get inside. We can rest some more before I need to get to the studio".

Axl seemed to agree and let the other man go, stepping in front of him. Face to face, Slash felt compelled to observe Axl's face while simultaneously feeling his boyfriend's gaze doing the same: dark circles were sitting under his eyes, his freckles were a faded memory due the lack of sun, yet Slash felt the uncontrollable urge to kiss him, only to refrain himself. He would never overstep the "no touch" rule and neither he wanted to get punched, however Axl seemed to have read his mind, because his lips were soon planted on Slash's.

The shitty rain, the chilly wind, his appointment, all seemed to disappear in the background leaving him to enjoy the moment. If only Axl's kiss also had the power to skip ahead to June and get them on a beautiful beach where they could relax and not freeze their butts off. He moved his hands in his boyfriend's hair, making sure to be as careful as possible but Axl seemed to feel better and he even returned the favor by letting his fingers wander all around Slash's forearm.

A familiar warmth started to make its way in his body and he knew that if he didn't stop now, they would end up making out in the rain so he slowly let the redhead go.

"We really need to go or we're gonna get drenched".

Axl seemed to agree, tugging Slash's wrist and leading him towards their bedroom, leaving the sad rainy sky behind. Once they were back in bed, Slash looked at the ceiling waiting for his boyfriend to make his first move, if he wanted, while his own head started to run in circles.

He wasn't the overthinking type or the one to indulge in sadness, the only emotions he liked were the good ones and he hoped anything else could be erased by either alcohol or being busy enough. He didn't even know why he felt so nostalgic, why his brain kept going back to London and his parents and it almost made him scream in frustration.

"Maybe we can shower together. You know, it's almost time for you to get ready". Axl's voice managed to snap him out of his tumultuous thoughts.

"Are you okay with that?"

"Yeah, I can handle that kind of touch". The redhead shrugged his shoulders, however Slash analyzed him for a second. No signs of distress or anger were visible so eventually he agreed.

Following his boyfriend into the bathroom, Slash realized maybe that was the solution: a hot, steamy shower and his gorgeous boyfriend helping him get clean. Yeah, it sounded like something that could make both of them relax and especially a nice distraction before stepping out in the rain.

---

Axl poured a hefty dose of coffee into his mug. Slash left already for the studio, yet he couldn't ease the heaviness that was squishing his heart and every thought seemed to drive back to his boyfriend. The redhead thought that the shower would help him, he even put his still persistent discomfort aside, but Slash's gaze still felt distant even when he was devouring him with lust and his demeanor just lacked his usual chill.

Did something happen? Or is he mad at me?

Rationally Axl knew it wasn't the case, and if it was he shouldn't have cared, but it was so strange to feel Slash's muscles so tensed up, his usual silence being a shade more depressing than it usually would have been. It was Axl's role being the moody one, yet there was something bothering Slash and he needed to do something about it. Screw his brain, screw whatever memory was lingering around his mind, he needed to cheer Slash up.

But how?

Talking always helped Axl out but it wasn't Slash's case, the guitarist was either too chill to care or would just feel awkward talking about it, which was counter-productive. Taking another sip, he scanned the kitchen and took the little notepad stuck on the fridge deciding to brainstorm some ideas.

What made Slash happy?

Snakes. Well, Bonnie and Clyde were currently chilling in their heated cages and fed before their owner left. He had no desire to buy another snake.

A bottle of Jack. A quick and dangerous solution. Something Slash wouldn't object to but also too basic and definitely he didn't need him to drink more than he was already doing.

Sex. Again, something Slash wouldn't say no to but the shower proved that when their minds weren't in the right place, their game sucked. Plus, Axl didn't think he had it in him at that moment, forcing himself would have made things more depressing than they already were.

Horror movies. Now, that was something Axl could work with. They could be rented fairly easily, Slash would have a nice distraction for a couple of hours and he might even join him. Plus, thinking about it, didn't Slash mention a recently released horror movie he wanted to see at the movie theater but never got the chance to? That was the perfect idea! Dumping the mug in the sink, the singer tried his best to get ready as fast as possible, dodging himself into his car and hitting the breaks.

The rain was merciless, making sure to soak as much of Axl's clothes as possible which only made him regret more his decision of getting out of the house. Fidgeting with the bracelets on his wrist, he made sure to scan closely the horror section but he couldn't help but feel invisible eyes all over him, praying and waiting to lure him. Mostly he didn't want to be recognized by any fan at that moment but there was also a more hidden fear.

He couldn't find him, could he?

"Do you need help, sir?" The unknown voice made his heart jump more than Axl would ever admit but soon he realized it was only the cashier. He was glad he decided to wear sunglasses inside, even if that made him look even crazier than he already was.

"No, thanks". He opted to say, almost regretting using his voice and not just shaking his head.

He could still feel the intense beating in his ears while picking a random VHS from the shelf, making sure to focus all his attention on it. The shivers and the pressure on his head signaling a headache didn't matter because he had to find the movie. After seemingly endless time, his eyes took a glimpse of a familiar image. Yes, it was just what he needed.

"Oh, that's a great movie!" The cashier started politely and Axl couldn't do much but to give him a fake smile. He just hoped Slash liked it.

On the way to his car, while the rain seemed to slow down a bit, the singer couldn't help but feel like a piece was missing. Was just a movie okay? Shouldn't he have done something more?

He almost didn't notice passing a supermarket until his eyes were caught by some flashy Christmas decorations. For fuck's sake, it was November still. However, it wouldn't hurt too much to stop by.

Yeah, maybe he knew what to add to movie night.

–

Slash thought that the temporary distraction from discussing and recording his new guitar parts would have lasted longer, however as soon as he stepped outside and was hit by the rain, his morale dropped back to zero.

He hated feeling this heavy, he hated the invisible grip his mind seemed to hold over his body at that moment, he just wanted to be carefree. Instead he found himself nervously playing with his fingers as he waited to start his car, dreading having to come back home but not because of Axl but the lack of control over himself.

Running a hand through his already frizzy hair, he took a deep breath. He wasn't like him to be this emotional and probably everything would have been over by tomorrow yet he hated being stuck into the present.

"Get it together, Slash. Axl's probably worried".

Axl. Slash didn't stop thinking about him even in the recording booth, hoping that his mood didn't drop down too much or that he didn't have any accidents. He didn't exactly know how to call them, they didn't seem like panic attacks: he just knew Axl wouldn't move and started crying and screaming. This type of weather didn't seem to be forgiving with him either, which made Slash lose his cool even more.

After what had seemed ages, Slash finally entered his house, only to be met with the kitchen door closed. He raised his eyebrow in confusion, usually Axl would jump on him as soon as he heard the front door unlocking but there was no sign of him.

"Ax, where are you?" He asked, with a hint of concern in his voice.

"Kitchen, do not come in". Axl yelled. "Go to the living room, I'll join you soon".

"Okay". Now Slash was freaking out a bit. Did Axl want to talk about something? Or worse, did something happen?

What the hell was happening? He and Axl went through the worst shit and came out still together. Yeah and so did Slash's parents before divorcing. He started to run his bracelets up and down his wrist as the faint sound of rain came back. Maybe the rain was really cursed. He stopped dead in his tracks once he noticed the TV on, more precisely showing a VHS screen movie.

Fidgeting with the remote, he couldn't help but smile once he saw the title popping up on the screen. He had no idea if it was a case or if Axl really picked it up  for him but either way his heart skipped a beat, not out of anxiety this time. Slash sat down and kept playing with the remote, patiently waiting for Axl until muffled steps could be heard.

"Close your eyes". The redhead demanded.

"What?"

"I know it's stupid but it's a surprise, so close your eyes".

Slash gave up, covering his eyes with his hand and waiting for Axl's instructions. Was he about to give him something? Or maybe Axl was about to tease him by wearing Slash's clothes again. Either way, he started to feel a hot rush.

"You can open them".

Certainly what met Slash's eyes was very curious: a big bowl of potato chips, some homemade cupcakes, two sliders and... spiders? Taking a closer look he realized the spiders were just chocolate balls and that the potato chips were bat shaped, meanwhile both the cupcakes and the sliders had received some Halloween decoration.

"Wow".

"I stopped at the supermarket. It's all pre-made shit and Halloween kits for kids, don't flatter yourself by thinking I would cook for you". Axl's harsh tone hid all his insecurities, starting from the way his eyes dropped down and his body language was ready to fight.

One of the hardest things Slash had to come to terms with was to learn Axl's way of interpreting the world: his stepfather and the people around him growing up made sure to install some beliefs that were hard to eradicate, resulting in Axl always being ready to pounce to avoid being disappointed.

"Of course. But still, thank you". He wanted to use more meaningful words but they seemed to die in his throat, overwhelmed by such a nice gesture. Just like that, Axl managed to help him forget the pouring rain outside and instead warm his heart.

Slowly, he pressed the play button while waiting for Axl to sit next to him. Just like earlier, he didn't force or initiate any contact but soon enough his boyfriend was leaning his head on his shoulder and Slash made sure to hold him in his arms. Soon, his hand found his way to Axl's lower back and he started to gently rub it while, on the TV, the main character started to raise their voice, making Axl scooping a bit closer to him.

"Are you sure you are not afraid?" Slash teased him.

"Fuck you". Axl replied.

"At least let's wait until the end of the movie". Slash regretted saying those words as soon as they left his mouth but Axl didn't seem to be offended or scared. Instead, he started to trace Slash's tattoos while the other man resumed his rubbing.

Eventually, all the sounds started to blend and it became increasingly harder to focus when he could feel the redhead's breathing on his neck, sending tingly sensation all the way down to his back. Soon, his lips found Axl's cheeks as he planted a kiss. His boyfriend responded by kissing him back on his mouth, the sugary taste of the cupcake still lingering and Slash's hands gripped every inch of Axl's back, soaking in the warmth irradiating from the skin until they parted away.

"God, they are so fucking stupid! Why don't they just hide?" Axl broke the silence.

“They can't hear you”. Slash shot back with a smile.

“I don’t care, they are still idiots!”

The guitarist decided to stay silent, preferring to position his body so that Axl could hold him. The redhead didn’t let the opportunity slide, starting to play with Slash’s hair almost as if he was a cat, earring a happy sigh from the other man. While his mind was still focused on the movie, his brain and thoughts seemed to be shut by Axl’s touch, his heartbeat slowed and the heaviness surrounding it seemed to be lifted at every fingertips on his skin.

Maybe this was the solution for rainy days: stay in each other’s arms forever. Slash liked that idea, anything that could make his brain shut and his heart happy.

–

Hands, all over Axl’s body. Purple bruises started appearing all over his pale skin but it wasn’t the worst sensation at that moment: the little droplets falling from his hair and his clothes bothered him more. He was shivering but he wasn’t allowed to change, he wasn’t punished enough according to his stepfather.

“You dared to say that?! On the Lord’s Day!” Axl’s heart started to beat so fast that he thought he could have died right there.

He kinda wished he did. It would have been better.

He stayed silent while his throat was closing up. How many times did he have to relive that? Wasn’t the torture enough? The water even started to burn, leaving marks alongside his bruises. It wasn’t supposed to happen… why was he burning?

“You’re the devil, William. I know Lucifer is inside you, but I’ll get it out”.

His airways were definitely closed now… he knelt to the floor, gasping for air and only later he realized what was happening: two strong hands were around his throat, choking him out. His eyes started to get heavy, his vision blurry but he waited for the voice, his angel’s voice, the one who seemed to always rescue him whenever he was having a nightmare. But this time the voice didn’t come, instead Axl collapsed on the floor and his stepfather’s grin was the last thing he saw before waking up.

Once his eyes were open, he started to feel the space next to him waiting to meet Slash’s body but instead his finger clashed with the cold sheets. His heart started to beat faster but he opted to focus his ears, hoping to listen to the shower running, but instead it was met with silence.

“He left you”. His brain supplied him.

It couldn’t be, there were no reasons for Slash to leave like that, it had to be something else. The suffocating sensation seemed to come to reality again, forcing Axl to run on low oxygen as he started to walk the bedroom in circles. The windows were tainted with raindrops again, which only increased Axl’s worry: if it was pouring, why did Slash leave?

“Because he is sick of you. You didn’t let him sleep last night”.

“No”. The redhead replied out loud, sitting on his bed.

It couldn’t be, it wasn’t the first time he had nightmares so why leave now? It didn’t make sense. He started to pick the skin around his finger, desperately trying to keep himself lucid and to find a plausible answer to all of this. His throat still felt like he was being strangled and the rain seemed to only get louder each second passed.

“You have fucking done it William. You deserve to be left alone, in your sins”.

Axl immediately covered his ears with his hand as strong as he could, until he could feel his finger digging into his skull. Maybe if he held that position long enough everything would have been okay… maybe he was having a nightmare again and he just needed to wake up. The sound of the rain, the feeling of having cotton into his ears and his stepfather’s voice all melted together, making him unable to move or hear anything. He just wanted Slash back, he needed him so bad.

“Axl?” The voice at the back of his mind seemed to mock him, reminding him of the man he had lost.

“Axl, it’s me. Can you turn around please?” The voice said again, this time not just in his head. 

Collecting all his energies, Axl’s body moved only to be met with Slash’s worried face. He almost wanted to laugh at the sick joke his mind was playing on him, until he felt a cold sensation under his fingertips: Slash’s bracelets were damp and laying under his hand.

“You’re back.” He managed to choke out. His stepfather was wrong and Axl was so relieved. 

“Of course I am.” Slash said, like it was so obvious. Little did he know, Axl's brain was still screaming at him. 

The guitarist held his hand, waiting for his boyfriend to either take it or ignore it. Axl’s body felt the urge to squeeze it, to grasp it until he would feel safe again and beg him to never leave him again. He only used a fraction of his strength, he held Slash’s hand feeling the cold rings against his palm, a weirdly calming sensation.

The rings were there. He was there.

“You were gone. I opened my eyes and the bed was empty”. He hated himself so much for saying those words, for using that lost puppy tone as if he wasn’t an adult and him and Slash hadn’t been together for years now.

“Ax, I’m sorry! I thought it would take less time, but this fucking rain slows everything down”. He gently started to rub circles on Axl’s fingers while his free hand went to grab a plastic bag.

The redhead couldn’t help but feel chills all down his arms at the sudden touch. Once again, he was disgusted with himself for being so scared even of the guy that did nothing but support him. How much patience had Slash left? Was the breaking point near and was he pushing him to it?

No wonder nobody loved you, you’re a fucking piece of work.

Shaking his head, he grabbed the bag that soon revealed a small pale yellow box with a writing on it : Macy’s. It was Axl’s favorite bakery, located on the other side of the town. 

“Slash… what the fuck did you do?!” The singer cringed at how bad his tone sounded. God, he was a real asshole, the guy drove through the rain and that was how Axl thanked him. “You’re crazy, it’s pouring out there!” He corrected himself.

His boyfriend shrugged his shoulders and moved some strands of hair out of his face. Axl was glad to see that the dark light that seemed to taint his eyes the previous day was replaced by a usual tiredness, both a blessing and a curse of how well the movie night went but also how little he let Slash rest.

“It wasn’t that bad when I left the house, it got worse on the way there and the fucking traffic… oh man, people seem to forget how to fucking drive in situations like these!” He chuckled, releasing Axl’s hand. “Now open that box, little shit”.

A strong sugary smell invaded his nostrils as he lifted the container to reveal four chocolate cookies, all looking insanely pretty and incredibly delicious. Axl stared at the food then back to Slash, who had a pleased smile pasted on his face, clearly enjoying the good outcome of his mission.

“Thanks”. The redhead’s voice was barely audible, probably he should have spoken louder to not seem ungrateful but the words died in his throat a bit. After an initial hesitation, Axl went to take a bite out of his food, only to be interrupted by Slash’s voice.

“Wait! I forgot to start the coffee machine. Shit, gimme me a minute, okay? I’ll go in the kitchen and I’ll be right back”.

“There’s no need to…” Axl started but his boyfriend was already gone.

Putting his cookie aside, Axl’s heart was still beating faster than normal and he couldn’t figure out why. Slash was just in the kitchen, he wouldn’t leave. He knew it wasn’t what was bothering him anymore, then why his hands were starting to get sweaty? 

You gotta repay him.

The realization hit him like a truck, making his eyes wander all over the room. He didn’t think he had the energy to return the favor back to Slash but what if that disappointed him?

You did the whole movie thing the other day. Slash would never ask anything in return. 

His rational side chimed in, making the redhead exhale loudly only to be crushed with doubt again: would really that be the case? Or the fairytale would end soon? In his confused state, he didn’t even notice his hands starting shaking neither the soothing pressure and the overgrowing heat, only when his hand felt like burning he realized that he was helding a hot mug and that the pressure was from Slash’s hands over his. 

Stuffing down the urge to jump away, he waited a moment while Slash quickly snatched away his hands, looking almost mortified. Axl wanted to punch himself so bad, maybe he should have or maybe break the old lamp in the living room.

“Sorry”. Slash said and then he took a sip out of his coffee.

The redhead shook his head and tried his best to give the other man a convincing smile, opting to focus on drinking his mug. The silence seemed to prolong for hours even if it was five minutes at best, the time to drink their coffees and eat their cookies, while letting occasionally satisfying noises of approval at the decadent dessert.

“Oh, I forgot to tell you what happened at the store! Dude, LA is fucking crazy!” Slash broke the silence and Axl’s heart started to beat normally again.

“Wanna get in the bed and tell me? It’s freezing here”. Axl said, sliding under the sheets.

Slash grinned and happily followed his boyfriend, opening his arms and waiting for Axl to cuddle against him, which didn’t take much time. He made sure to move as slowly as possible and the singer was grateful for that. The calming voice of the guitarist, who progressively got more excited in telling his story, made every voice and thought in Axl’s mind dissapear.

He didn’t realize the rain started pouring again, too busy listening to Slash and feeling his arms around his body. Whoever thought that the solution for rainy days was a morning spent in bed and Slash’s contagious laugh as he talked about a old lady yelling to sue the bakery because “they run out of oatmeal cookies”.

Logan: I don’t mean to be rude—

Wade: Yet, sadly, accidental rudeness occurs alarmingly often.

What about a crack a/b/o fic where the Time Ripper gives Wade a/b/o characteristics bc Logan had them in his universe and they both freak out about it?

…

Wade suddenly leaned close to Logan’s neck—making his hackles immediate rise. It’d been awhile since anyone dared to get close enough to scent Logan, but he was familiar with the entitled behavior. Alphas sniffing around whenever they wanted— sticking their noses in places they shouldn’t.

“Ooo nice cologne! It’s really giving Canadian wild man,” Wade said and leaned away, smiling like he hadn’t just rudely violated Logan’s space. It’s not like he could possible know it reeked of alpha behavior.

Logan glared at him, wary. “I’m not wearing any cologne.”

“Riiiight,” Wade drawled, “so you just naturally smell like freshly fallen snow and pine trees?”

And a subtle hint of burning wood and tobacco, but Wade wasn’t going to mention that. It was obvious Logan smoked like a chimney.

Every bone in Logan’s body tensed. “Yeah? I just smell like this.”

Wade paused; a rare occurrence of thinking before he spoke. If Logan wasn’t yanking his chain, it probably had to do with his mutation. Honestly, Wade expected him to smell more like a wet dog, given the ‘wild animal’ accusations, but he wasn’t complaining. It smelled like the cologne an actor down on their luck would advertise to remind the world of how sexy and manly they were. If Logan chose to douse himself in the Sexy ManTM cologne and hide it under the sink, Wade wasn’t going to throw a fit.

In fact, he might thank him for it. The whole apartment had the smell of Canadian wilderness, just on the side of forest fire. Logan must have sprayed the place (and he meant either literally with a bottle of cologne or like Mary Puppins did sometimes when she felt territorial- if Logan was telling the truth).

“Wow,” Wade said, deciding to let it go just because Logan’s shoulders were up to his ears and his knuckles were tight in a fist.

A sore spot maybe. He wouldn’t question it, even though he really wanted to. Didn’t mean Wade wasn’t going to tease him, though.

“God really does pick favorites, huh?”

Logan huffed and grumbled under his breath, “It’s given me more trouble than it’s worth. Not exactly a gift.”

Logan scent was always potent. Smelly, to most— intoxicating to some. People couldn’t decide if they resented him just for existing and smelling the way he did or if his potent scent gave them a free pass to treat him like he was for sale. More subtle smelling omegas usually got by unnoticed, but nothing about Logan was subtle or allowed him to fly under the radar.

Wade didn’t seem to know what to make of the comment, looking as if he would vocalize a stream of question marks if he could. (How on earth could naturally smelling like the sexiest man alive be a bad thing??) Logan felt a stab of envy, thinking about how lucky Wade was living without the cloud of pheromones in the air and the countless rules based on secondary genders.

Logan also didn’t know what to think about the fact that Wade was only now saying something about his scent. Since he landed in this universe, he was under the impression that no one had pheromones and therefore, no one smelled them either. He decided he’d ask Althea about it tomorrow.

…

I actually have a whole au about it if anyone is interested in this crack idea