The Second Coming || Guns N Roses, Bon Jovi, David Bowie

The Second Coming: Nine

Slash and Duff followed Axl onto the stage. I stood there at the doorway, shaking, quivering, desperately trying to think myself out of this situation. The guitar felt too heavy in my hands, it was only after I'd finished playing that I realized it was Izzy's prized possesion. My palms were slick with sweat and I couldn't get a good grip on the fingerboard.

"Yay, Callie!" Steven cheered as he ran over to the stage door, beckoning me along with him. "It's fun, man, I swear! The girls throw panties at you, and sometimes food if you're lucky."

I clutched his arm tightly to my chest. He grinned pervertedly, "Now that's what I'm talking about."

"What? No!" I said, quickly dropping his arm. "I need you to get me outta here! Like... right now!"

"Outta here?"

"Yes!"

"Okay." He said agreeably and grabbed onto one of my hands.

Relief was beginning to flood through me, but that all fell out of my butt the second I saw where he was taking me.

All he did was yank me through the doorway with him, and propel me with unnatural force onto the stage.

"I totally would've helped you, but I don't wanna be buttfucked! Good luck."

I glared at him so hatefully as he went to his drumset. He smiled and gave me a thumbs up.

The stage was completley dark, the crowd couldn't see us yet. I could see them with frightening clarity, and it scared the living daylights out of me. They weren't even screaming yet but they sounded like a steam engine.

I crept along in the dark, hoping to find a door or somewhere to hide.

Instead I ran flat into someone.

"Damn it, Calliope!" That was definitely Axl.

"Sorry," I whispered back. "Doesn't this prove I'm not cut out for this?"

"Go stand over there next to Slash, and try not to ruin the whole damn show. Just do what he does."

"But I don't wanna do-"

"Shut up and go!"

I huffed under my breath, turning my back to him. My eyes were adjusting to the dark and I could just see Slash's sillhouette in the dark. I went to him and stood there, shaking.

"Hi." I whispered.

"Don't fuck this up," he responded.

That scared the shit out of me, only because he actually sounded serious. That was completely unlike him at the time.

"All you have to is play power chords for the most part. You'll be fine."

For a minute or so, all I could hear was the sound of my own breathing, and my heart beating out of my chest. I was positive I might wet my pants- that was, until we started playing.

Slash began, and then came the drums. I recognized Izzy's entrance just in time, and when Axl began to sing the lights came on- full force.

I wasn't really thinking about what I was playing, the power chords were easy to distinguish from Slash's playing. Steven looked like the happiest person on the planet, grinning as he expertly played his drums. Axl was center stage, so I watched him.

Duff was on the complete other side of the stage- and completely unrecognizable. Until that point I'd regarded Duff as a man of few words, a reserved person all around. I was wrong.

He was shirtless, eyes closed, playing with ease as he skipped along the edge of the stage, like a sweaty bambi. I smiled a little bit- this is how he could deal with being so serious all the time.