"I am hot, and when I'm not, I'm cold as ice," I sang out as the bus rolled toward Ohio.

"Get outta my way, just step aside! Or pay the price," Axl screamed in his trademark screech.

"Come on, you guys, shut up," Izzy whined as Axl continued.

"...There's nothing you can do," I sang, sticking my tongue out at him, only to receive a dirty magazine to the face.

"Dick!" I shouted as I began flipping through the magazine. "It's always the same blonde girls," I said with a frown. "What about us brunettes?"

"Or us redheads," Axl purred, laying back and dropping his head in my lap.

"Yeah," Duff cheered, "equal representation," he joked.

"I'm serious, I wish there were more glorified brunettes- and redheads," I said, running my fingers through Axl's silky copper hair.

"'Ey! What about us mixed girls?" Slash asked with a drunken laugh.

"Equality, ooh-rah," Axl barked, raising a fist.

Axl and I were finally friends again, even though I was still a bit upset about our previous relationship's end (which was justified). We could now joke around and talk without the bitterness between us, and we could all have a good time.

Once again, I was hardly speaking to Nikki; he knew that I had had sex with Duff, but he didn't seem angry. He only seemed sad, but he knew that I was right; we were never official, and we never had a title, so he let it go. Lately, I had been sleeping on the Guns N' Roses bus every now and then, but now that the dust had settled between Axl and I, our 'sleepovers' were more frequent... until I got the news that shooed me away.

Steven stumbled into the front lounge, dropping into the seat across from Izzy, who scrambled into the corner farthest from him, tucking his legs up, screaming with a cigarette perched between his lips.

"Bad, Stevie! Shoo," he shouted, waving his magazine at him.

"What the hell is he doing?" I asked no one in particular.

"Adler has crabs, and they're spreading in the bus," Izzy squawked, eyes wide.

"Ew! Stevie," I said, a mixture of disgust and concern on my face.

Steven smiled bashfully and shook his head.

"Back to your bunk, bug boy," Slash shouted from the back lounge.

I felt myself start to laugh uncontrollably, causing the other boys to look at me wide eyed. One by one, they all started laughing, except for Steven, who still shook his head in shame as he headed back to his bunk. Duff fell over, his head slamming painfully into my shoulder, causing us to laugh harder even though pain sent shocks through my arm. Izzy slid out of his defensive 'anti-crabs' pose, and even Slash could be heard laughing in the back.

"Your fucking laugh, Sadie," Axl wheezed, trying to regain his composure.

"I-I can't help it," I said, tears streaming down my face as I struggled to breathe, "he called him- he called him 'bug boy,' I'm fuckin' dyin'!"

Two hours and a melted ice pack later, we had arrived at the venue. I packed my small bag and kissed Duff on the cheek before walking back to the Mötley bus, trying to avoid the bruise that had formed on my shoulder.

Walking in, I saw Nikki sitting on the couch, scribbling on a note pad.

"Back so soon?" he asked without looking up.

"Yeah... Steven has crabs," I explained, feeling my stomach flip at even saying it. "Apparently they're spreading through their bus, so I wanted to get out of there."

"Good idea," he muttered, still writing.

"Yeah... Well, I'll leave you be," I mumbled, dragging my bag to my bunk- well the one I shared with Nikki.

"I'm not ignoring you," he called after me.

"Never said you were."

After organizing my stuff, I laid down in the bunk, looking up at the ceiling.

"Fuck," I hear Nikki mumble, followed by ripping paper.

"Sixx, don't over do it," I whispered softly as I closed my eyes, not expecting him to hear me.

Gently pulling open the bunk curtains, he looked at me, seeing if I was asleep. Opening one eye, I looked over at him. He seemed to perk up when he realized that I was awake, only to wilt again.

"What's going on?" I asked him, turning my head so I could face him.

He growled frustratedly and dropped his head on my stomach, causing me to giggle.

"I miss you, Sadie," he said sadly, shaking his head in frustration. "I can't fucking focus when you're not around."

"Well, I'm here now," I pointed out, stroking his currently flat hair.

"You know what I mean. It's not the same now that you and Duff are a thing."

"I know... I'm sorry. It was just too hard to be around all the time."

"You mean when I was shooting up behind closed doors?" he asked in a sad tone.

"...Yes."

"Understandable," he mumbled, lifting his head carefully to avoid hitting the ceiling of the bunk. "I guess I'll leave you be. Oh, and I figured your, uh, special time was soon, so there's a little box of evil in the bathroom for you," he mumbled.

"What?" I asked with a chuckle. "My special ti- what the fuck are you talking about?"

He raised his eyebrows, giving me a look that screamed, "think about it."

"Oh," I said. "Oh. Thanks."

"Yup. No tampons in the toilet on the bus," he reminded before walking away.

I felt my stomach drop. I forgot about my period; I was pretty sure it was a few days late.

°°°°°°

After another week had gone by, I started to worry even more; my period was late, and I had been with three potential candidates- Jesus, was I being a whore? Add that to things to worry about later.

Holding my hand to my forehead, I stood in the bathroom. This was not good; I was too young to have a kid- especially with any of them. I had to decide what to do, who to tell first.

"Hey, Mick," I shouted, sticking my head of the bunk.

"Yeah?" he shouted back, a plume of smoke coming from his bunk.

"When's our next day off?" I asked.

"Uh, tomorrow, but we're driving all day.

"Shit," I thought.

"Next day off the bus?" I asked hopefully.

"Thursday, I think."

"Fuck. It's only Sunday."

"Thanks."

"Yup."

I closed the door behind me and took a deep breath. I would tell Duff and Nikki, maybe Vince while I was at it. It was the right thing to do. Seeing as I was on the bus with Nikki all day, I figured I would get it out of the way.

"Nikki," I yelled.

"What?"

"I need you," I said, biting my lip in worry as I leaned out of the door.

I didn't know how he would take it, nor did I know what I would say, but I knew I had to tell him, even if he wasn't responsible.

"What's up?" he asked, leaning on the bunk across from me.

I crooked my finger at him, hoping he would stand close enough for me to whisper. He tilted his head, like a confused puppy, but still walked closer.

"What?" he asked quietly.

"When was the last time you and I had sex?" I asked, hoping he would remember.

"I don't know, like," he squinted as he wracked his brain. "Threeuuuu.... Two weeks ago... ish."

"Fuck," I muttered, habitually biting on my thumbnail.

"Don't bite," he said, brushing my hand away. "What's wrong?" he asked, obviously concerned.

"I... I think I might be pregnant. I'm not sure, it's just a guess," I mumbled.

"You think it's mine..."

"I think it's a possibility, but again, I'm not sure."

"Duff?"

"Another possibility."

"You're considering a third, aren't you?" he asked, something strange lingering behind his green eyes.

"Vince," I said quietly.

At that, Nikki began laughing.

"What? Will you cut it out?!" I hissed, lightly smacking his chest.

"I'm sorry, it's just- he never told you did he?"

"Told me what?"

"I'm ninety percent that that's a 'no.'"

"Told me what?" I asked again.

"You two never fucked. He just thought it was funny that you never remembered," he said innocently.

"That... son of a bitch!" I hissed, trying in vain to remember that night. "Is that why you told me not to worry about it?" I asked, my mouth hanging open as I tried to grasp the situation.

He nodded wordlessly, his eyes holding a smile.

"Fuck!" I shouted angrily.

I felt so stupid; most of everything going on was because of that asshole not telling me the truth. I felt tears fill my eyes as I angrily tried to blink them away.

"Hey," Nikki said softly, brushing them away with his thumb, "why are you crying? You should be celebrating!" He chuckled. "You didn't fuck him."

"I can't believe him!" I said, ignoring Nikki. "I felt so bad about it for so long, and it never even happened." Angry tears soon started streaming down my face. "None if this would have happened it he had just told me the truth!"

"Oh, Sadie," Nikki soothed, gently pulling me into a hug. "Don't feel bad; After what I've done, I deserve nothing more than you leaving me... Shit, I hope that didn't make you feel worse," he said nervously.

I shook my head. "I know you're trying to help," I managed between sobs.

"Look, whatever happens, I'm here for you, okay?" he asked, tilting my head up.

I nodded sadly, wiping my nose on the back of my hand.

"Good thing my shirt is black," Nikki teased, wiping the black tear tracks from my cheeks. "By the way..." he said slowly, a look of observation on his face. "What happened to your shoulder?" he asked, brushing his fingers across the now black bruise that was revealed by my tank top.

"Oh, Duff has a hard head."

"Did he fall on you or something?" Nikki asked, half serious.

"Sort of; ya know how I told you Steven has crabs?"

"Yeah."

"Well, Slash called him bug boy and I lost my shit and started laughing."

"Ah, the infamous Sadie laugh," Nikki said with a chuckle.

"Yeah, and they all kind of fell over laughing," I explained, blush rising to my cheeks.

"Your laugh is so cute, dude. We laugh because when it's genuine, it's very contagious," he teased with a smile, softly poking my stomach.

"Fuck off, Sixx," I replied with a giggle, swatting his hand away.

°°°°°°

Later that night, I way laying in Nikki's bunk, trying to fall asleep while the bus was still quiet. After the show, they had all gone out to a bar to party right away; they didn't even have a signing.

I tossed and turned restlessly, trying to settle my mind, but I was too wired. Kicking off the blankets, I dangled my legs out of the bunk, hoping moving around would help me relax a little. I often slept in weird positions; the weirder and more uncomfortable it looked, the more comfortable I actually was.

After my legs started to go numb, I pulled them back, angling myself so that they would be tucked between my body and the wall. Nothing was working; the bus was too quiet, and I hated sleeping alone.

Trying to sleep was useless; my mind was stuck on panic mode over the possibility of me being pregnant. I was too young to have kids, and this was not exactly the circumstance I would have preferred (the mystery of Duff or Nikki was killing me). As far as I could remember, I hadn't slept with either of them and not used protection.

"Nope," I thought. "Duff and I have never not used protection," I mentally corrected myself.

Still, the last time Nikki and I went without was a while back, and we were usually on top of it (no pun intended).

Soon, I heard the bus door open and footsteps of one pair of boots crossing the bus. I could hear shuffling in the bunk hall, and the curtain opened to reveal Nikki, who was still standing and appeared to be semi-sober.

"Hey, did I wake you?" he asked quietly.

"No, I haven't been able to sleep."

"Ah. Scootch," he said, sliding in beside me.

"Your shirt smells," I mumbled, scrunching my nose. "Is that the one you wore on stage?"

"Yeah," he said, peeling it off and throwing it to the floor. "Better?"

"Much. My nostrils thank you," I joked with a laugh, resting my head on his warm chest. "Nikki?"

"Yes?"

"What if I am pregnant?"

"Then you are."

"What if it's yours?"

"Then it is..."

"What if it isn't?"

"Then it's not," he said, still speaking calmly.

"Gee, I feel so helped," I muttered sarcastically.

"I know; I'm helpful like that," he said with a soft chuckle. "Don't worry about it so much, Sexy Sadie. We'll get it figure out," he assured before pulling the bunk curtain closed.

"Nikki?"

"Yeah?"

"How come you're not still out with the guys?" I asked, finally growing sleepy.

"I told you before; I miss you. I miss being around you. You and T-Bone are my best friends, and half the time, I'm ready to punch him in the nose."

"And the other half I'm punching you in the nose?" I asked with a laugh.

"Only a fraction of that half," he said, lazily running his fingers over my shoulder blade. "Is this okay?"

"What?"

"This. Us sharing a bunk; laying together."

"Why wouldn't it be?"

"Well, I don't know what's going on between you and Duff," he said softly.

"He and I... we just sleep together, Sixx. Nothing more."

"Like you and me?" he asked sadly.

"No. No relationship will ever be like ours."

"Glad to hear it, I guess."