Feed the Fire

After stopping in Birmingham, Alabama the tour pulled into Miami for its October 30th date. When they arrived at the Convocation Center there were invitations waiting for them to a Halloween party. Diddy, ever the party boy was throwing his Halloween Bash the next night in Miami at B.E.D. which was one of the hottest nightspots in town.

"I'm not dressing up for this party," Billie stated as he walked into the crafts services room holding the invitation. "I haven't dressed up in years and the Bush mask doesn't count," he announced as he sat down at the table where Sabrina, Beth, and Mike were sitting eating their dinner.

"What do you mean?" Sabrina said with a puzzled look upon her face.

"One year I dressed up as Count Mikeula while Tre dressed as Benji Madden complete with the tattoos, but Billie didn't do a thing; except dress in black," Mike explained in between bites of his roast beef.

"So you're not dressing up for Diddy then?" Beth inquired the lead singer.

"Nope, nothing you can say or do can make me," Billie said crossing his arms across his chest like that was the end of the discussion.

The next night everyone met in the lobby to wait for a limo which was going to take them to Diddy's party at B.E.D. They found out some interesting information about the club; instead of tables and chairs, there were king size beds. Dinner and drinks were served to you in bed; hence the name.

When Billie and Adie came down to the lobby the lead singer saw that everyone else except Beth and Sabrina were already there in the lobby waiting. He chuckled at what his friends and band mates were wearing. Mike was dressed as the original Willy Wonka, complete with the hat and funky bowtie, but minus the jewfro.

Tre and Jill were dressed as a couples theme by being Cleopatra and Marc Anthony. 'All she needs is a snake and then she's perfect,' Billie thought to himself. The fact that Jill found the need to dress up herself and Tre in a theme costume urked the singer and the others to no end; they all wished that she would disappear off the face of the Earth. Toby on the other hand was looking quite dapper as a 70's disco dancer, complete with the huge bell bottoms and huge gold chains around his neck.

Billie was most happy with the choice of costume that his wife had found. She was dressed as a sexy Harry Potter type wizard. Her micro mini dress barely covered her bottom and he was having a hard time keeping his eyes off her cleavage which was so nicely framed with a plunging v-neck.

In Billie's eye the checkmate of the night was his own costume. He had found a costume that even made Adie disgusted at the sight of him. The clown costume he found to piss Beth off was brilliant; the head piece was this huge scary clown head which made him tower over even Mike. The arms were longer due to the sleeves of the top which extended his arm reach to match the huge head. He was a fright to behold, which was confirmed by those who saw him as he made his way to the lobby.

Mike was shaking his head at Billie's choice of costume when a gasp from Toby made him turn to see what had elicited such a noise from the manager. His gaze followed in the general direction of Toby's and soon a corresponding gasp of his own escaped his lips. He had seen Beth in her costume of choice. Mike's breath quickened as well as his loins when he saw Beth walking towards them dressed as Princess Leia when she was a slave for Jabba the Hut in 'Return of the Jedi'. Thoughts of seeing Carrie Fisher dressed in a brown metal slave girl outfit when he was just a mere lad of 11 years old came rushing back to him.

He tore his gaze away from Beth in the barely there slave girl outfit to see what Sabrina decided to wear. She was dressed as some sort of dark angel. Her black colored torn wings sprung from her back like they were always there. Her dress hugged her curves and pushed up breasts till her cups over floweth. She looked like an angel who lost her halo many moons ago. Her look was completed with dark makeup on a pale face.

As the women walked toward the waiting group all was well until Beth turned and caught sight of the huge creepy clown. The scream that came from the young woman was unearthly. Beth stopped dead in her tracks and let loose with another ear piercing scream. Sabrina stopped at the sound and saw Beth began to shake at the sight at the clown. She moved over to the younger woman, "Are you okay?"

Beth didn't respond to Sabrina's question. Sabrina then grabbed Beth's arm and pulled her toward the women's restroom further down in the lobby. Adie followed and once the door closed, Beth started to come around.

"Clowns... I hate clowns... who the fuck is dressed as a clown?" Beth finally squeaked out.

"That would be my husband," Adie admitted with a frown.

"Fucking asshole; I hate, hate, hate clowns. I can't get into the limo with him. He is just too creepy."

"I'll have Tobe call another car," Sabrina said as she pulled her phone out from its hiding place within her cleavage. After a quick conversation she hung up and turned back towards Beth, "Toby is arranging for another car for you, me, him and Mike. Marc Anthony and Cleopatra will go will Killer Clown and Adie in the limo that's waiting out front."

"I'm sorry Sab for causing a fuss, but I can't take clowns... " Beth said trailing off.

"It's okay, everyone has something they are scared of... mine is bees and flying bugs," Sabrina said with a smile and nudge to the still shaken younger woman.

Beth smiled as Adie gave her a hug before leaving to bathroom to rejoin her husband and the ancient Egyptian duo. Adie decided to give her husband a piece of her mind for purposely choosing such a distressing costume for Beth. She grumbled under her breath as she pushed open the door to leave the room and join the others.

About 10 minutes later, Sabrina's phone rang and Toby let the women know that the second limo was there waiting and reassuring that the first limo was long gone. Sabrina hung up the phone and she and Beth left the bathroom to join a waiting Disco King and Willy Wonka.

Upon finally arriving at the club, the paparazzi were out in full force so the four friends had to stand and pose before going in. Questions were being shouted out, 'Why did you come in a different limo?'

Sabrina smiled and gave Beth's hand a quick squeeze, "That would be my fault. My costume had an issue that had to get corrected so we told Billie, Adie, Jill, and Tre to go ahead of us since we didn't know how long it would take to fix my costume." The answer seemed plausible and it satisfied the paparazzi.

The foursome stood for a few more minutes before finally going inside. When they entered B.E.D. they stood and gaped at the club. King sized beds were everywhere; some were on the main floor while others were more private enclosed within netting as so to create a more romantic experience. Diddy had gone all out and the Halloween theme flowed through the room. Sabrina did notice that the guest seemed to be not the normal attendees that Diddy normally would invite but rather it was a more rock and roll crowd. She saw Tommy Lee along with Dave Narravo and the rest of Supernova, along with other rock and roller's that she was friends with.

Beth suddenly crashed into Mike as she caught a glimpse of Billie in his creepy clown costume. The lean man wrapped his arm around the shaking woman and led their group in the opposite direction to claim a bed on the main floor. He positioned himself so that he blocked her view of Billie. Beth smiled at Mike silently thanking him for being a better door than a window.

As the night went on, everyone was eating and drinking all except Sabrina but no one seemed to notice she wasn't consuming alcohol. All of a sudden the DJ got on the mic and quieted down the crowd. "Okay, okay, okay... Hey folks the next song is a dedication. Fallen Angel, this is for you; from single black rose."

Sabrina wasn't paying attention until the DJ said the words 'single black rose.' Her head jerked up and she gave Toby a wide eyed look. A single black rose meant only one thing and suddenly Sabrina's mind went back to another time.

The day was just winding down for her 19th birthday. She had been wined and dined and now they were riding on the back of her Harley up to their favorite 'parking' spot up on Mulholland Drive which overlooked the city. When they pulled up she dismounted and walked over to 'their' spot. She didn't see that he had reached into one of the saddle bags to grab something until he joined her. From behind his back, he pulled out a single black rose and handed it to her.

"Oh my god, it's beautiful. How did you find a black rose?" she asked him taking the flower and bringing it to her nose.

He smiled that lopsided grin that she had grown to love, "Well one of the other guys was banging this chick who worked at this flower shop."

"It's beautiful, thank you."

"Well from now on, that's how I will 'sign' my name to gifts for you; a single black rose."

Sabrina blinked when Toby nudged her back into the present. The man in question from her memory was now moving into focus. He moved past the throngs of party go-ers to the front of the crowd. He choice of costume made Sabrina knees melt. That lopsided grin was there but there was something else about him that just drew her to him. She rose from her bed and literally glided across the floor to where he stood waiting for her.

His Dracula costume suited him; from the eyeliner ringing his eyes down to the dark gothic suit he wore. She walked into his open awaiting arms as he dropped her into a dip. Her head rocked back and her long slender neck was shown off to perfection and he dropped his mouth down to let his breath graze her skin. The hot air brought a delicious feeling in the pit of her stomach. He smiled as saw that even after being apart for well over 10 years that he still knew her trigger points he smiled at the feeling of power that it elicited. He finally ended the show as he moved his mouth to her jugular vein and lightly sucked at it bringing a moan from the woman in his arms. He smiled showing his new eye teeth fangs as he brought Sabrina to an upright position.

"Sabrina."

"Nikki... "

Fallen angel ripped and bruised
Think of better days
Life is rude, treats you bad
Tears your wings away
Raise your eyes to star and skys
Believe and fly away
Take your dreams and your broken schemes
And sweep the past away.

As Great White's 'The Angel Song' began to play and the couple moved across the floor; Tre was trying to shake off the thoughts he was feeling. The fact of hearing about his ex-wife and his best friend was one thing, but to actually see Sabrina in the arms of another man was something else entirely. When she moved into her former lover's arms and watched him molest her neck was more than Tre could take. He turned away but when he heard her moan; he nearly lost himself. Her moans were one of the things he loved about making love with her; she was vocal and didn't care who heard. He felt her moan from the tips of his toes to the top of his head. As he watched the two dance across the floor a new feeling came over him; a feeling of remorse and regret.

Sabrina looked into Nikki Sixx's eyes as they danced. "I'm sorry about you and Donna... " she began.

"Yea, thanks."

"How are the kids taking it?"

Nikki sighed, "As well as they are going to take it. The older ones they understand but the younger ones... " he trailed off closing his eyes.

Sabrina just nodded and pulled the man into a hard embrace. She felt his shoulders shake a little as the thoughts of his children suffering overcame him. After a moment, he pulled back and looked at her. "And you, how are you holding up?"

Sabrina pasted a smile on her lips, "Just fine."

"Liar, I have known you since you were 18, and you are lying through your teeth," Nikki retorted.

Now it was Sabrina's turn, "The tour is horrible. He's flaunting the new one, their crew hates me... " she trailed off again closing her eyes against the thoughts.

"And?" Nikki looked at the woman again, seeing that there was something more that she was having a hard time over.

"I'm pregnant... about two and a half months along."

"Wow... when and by your tone, I take it you haven't told him yet."

Sabrina shook her head, "No... The last time we slept together was the night of the VMA's... I wish... I... I dunno," she said sounding defeated.

"Hey, let's go sit down and talk for a bit, you look as though as you need it." With that Nikki wrapped his arm around the woman and led her to a more secluded bed. She sat down and he unlaced the curtains and closed them shut for privacy.

Tre saw that the two stopped dancing and were talking in the dance floor. He grit his teeth every time the other man touched Sabrina. He watched her pull Nikki into an embrace and the drummer wished it were him rather than the other man. When he saw Nikki led Sabrina to an out of the way bed and then pull the curtains shut; he lost it. Tre stood up quickly and stalked off to find Jill. When he came up to her, he grabbed her arm and pulled her toward the door; "We're out of here... now."

Mike watched the commotion with a raised eyebrow. He saw Sabrina go to Nikki like a moth to a flame. He was amused at Tre's reaction to what was going on between the two on the dance floor. When Tre stalked out of the club dragging Jill behind him, the bass player actually laughed out loud. 'About damn time Tre gets a taste of his own medicine,' Mike thought to himself.

A scream from along side of him brought him out of his musings. Billie had snuck up to the bed that he, Toby and Beth were occupying. The lead singer came up behind Beth and tapped her on the shoulder which is what elicited that scream from her. She got up and ran away with the creepy clown right on her tail. The younger woman was running for her life and found respite behind a closed door.

Billie was laughing so hard that he couldn't breathe. The costume he wore was well worth the grief he was going to get from his wife later on. He went to follow Beth through the door she disappeared through but when he saw where she went; he figured that was a worse fate then him following her.

Nikki stretched out on the bed and moved his arms behind his head. He watched Sabrina work through her thoughts in her head and just waited until she was ready to talk. He wondered why she hadn't told her ex husband about the pregnancy. He knew that she was still at risk for a miscarriage at this stage in the game. The man thought back to when they were still an item and the pain that Sabrina felt when she miscarried their child when she was just less than 4 months pregnant. He shook his head as he thought about how much this pregnancy meant to Sabrina; he was blessed with a number of wonderful children and step children while she had no surviving children.

Sabrina let her mind wander and wrap itself around this issue. She considered this man beside one of her oldest and actually most trusted friends outside of Toby and Mike. It took a long time for them to get back to that point, but the birth of Nikki and Donna's first child together broke the ice between the two old friends. After Sabrina caught Nikki in bed with Donna while they were engaged; Sabrina broke all ties with the man. Even after he and Donna married, Sabrina still held a grudge.

When the birth of their child was announced there were numerous flowers arrangements for the proud parents, but one arrangement stood out. In a vase nestled amongst the huge bouquets was a single black rose. She sent a short, to the point note along with the rose; 'I forgive you'. The next day a large wildflower bouquet was delivered and the single black rose within it signaled who the arrangement was from and with that, Sabrina and Nikki began to repair their shattered friendship.

Since that time, Sabrina and Nikki had successfully reunited as friends. And even though they didn't speak every day or anything; they both knew that they were there for each other. When Nikki had heard of her divorce, he sent a single black rose to let her know that he was thinking of her. When his divorce hit the news; a single black rose appeared at his home.

She sat there and looked over to the man lounging next to her. She allowed herself to let a few tears slip and when he saw the liquid seep out from her eyes; he opened his arms and Sabrina came to him. She settled onto his broad chest and heard his heart beat through his suit. "I miss him... " she said so quietly that she thought he didn't hear her.

"I miss her... " his response rumbled deep in his chest. Her head rose up with his sigh. She snuggled closer to him and they laid there in silence listening to the music playing and the crowd sounds as it filtered through the closed curtains.

"I am being erased from his life... He forbid from seeing the kids and everything. She even had the nerve to ask me cover up my tattoos that have his name in them. I don't know what to do... I'm scared to say anything. The tour is chaos; Beth is fighting with Tre and Jill, the lighting and sound guys hate me, and Tre and Jill are flaunting themselves in front of me. I can't take it... No one outside of my band knows I'm pregnant. I just don't know what to do Nikki, I don't want to do this myself but I'm afraid that even if he knows; he still won't be there."

Nikki sighed again, "Wow Sabrina that is some shitty story. Do you plan on telling him? I mean you can't really hide you being pregnant after a certain time."

"I know... I just can't do it yet, but yea I'll have to at some point of time."

"You do know that it's not going away right? If you ignore it, this will still be there." She didn't say anything but he felt her nod her head with agreement to his words. "Come on, let's blow this juke joint and go somewhere where we can really talk," Nikki said as he pushed here up to a sitting position. He got up and held out his hand to her. She grasped it and rose from the bed. He wrapped his arm around her and propelled her through the room and out the back door where no paparazzi were allowed.

Mike saw the two leave and shook his head and wondered what Sabrina doing. He shook his head at the thought and stood up to go to the bathroom. He walked across the room and opened the door and moved inside the room. As he was beginning to start to pee he heard a whimper coming from one of the stalls. Turning slightly he looked toward the sound and was surprised when a dainty leg was seen from under the barrier. "Beth?" he asked with a frown.

"Mike... is that you?" came her voice.

"Are you okay? What are you doing in here?"

"Billie... " she said trailing off with a whimper.

"Beth honey, it's just a clown... he can't hurt you," he laughed. When she didn't return the laughter he frowned again. He finished up and tucked himself away and zipped up with a fluid motion. After washing his hands, he turned and walked over to the stall Beth was hiding out in. He lightly pushed on the door but it didn't budge. "Beth sweetie... " he implored.

The sound of the lock releasing resounded through the room and he again pushed lightly on the door, this time rewarded with it swinging inward. He looked at the pitiful sight of Beth sitting on the open rimmed toilet seat with her legs pulled up and hugging her knees against her chest. Her makeup was in disarray from her crying and it pulled on Mike's heart strings. He entered the stall and gently picked her up and hugged her to his chest; murmuring into her hair as he walked out of the bathroom and following the path that Sabrina had taken earlier; he left the club via the back door with the crying woman held tightly against his chest.