Authors note: Okay its 41 degrees and I think I might possibly be melting… I have a block for the last chapter of hold me I'm scared but I'm about half done… I'll get there. This idea happened so I'm posting anyway. So it's loosely based the wizard of Oz, kind of, but not really, it follows the BTR band story still, just read it and let me know what you think…
Kendall couldn't believe they were moving. It had all happened so fast that he barely had time to register what happened only two days ago.
When the opportunity for his family to not become homeless was raised he couldn't just say no to it, no matter how obscene it was. Even if it meant moving to LA for three months until his mum could find a steady job there. It was bound to be easier than finding a job in their tiny town in Kansas.
The storm had destroyed everything, everything that they owned, and everything he knew about his life ever since he was born. Things he thought he'd never miss like the door frame where he was measured each year, or the burnt carpet in the closet he and Bobby had made when they were ten when they had started a small electrical fire, and then there was the dent in the wall when they tried to use his mums treadmill when she was at work and they accidentally set it to high, ramming themselves into the wall.
They were gone.
Everything was gone.
All he had were the clothes he was wearing and his family, which was all that really mattered to him anyway.
"Give me those," Kendall said making a grab for the pair of plaid pants his best friend Bobby was holding out of his reach in a taunting manner.
He and his family had been living with Bobby since their house was destroyed four months ago, so his mum could look for a job. They had been best friends for as long as he could remember and their parents were close.
Kendall bitterly stuffed the plaid pants into his duffle bag that Bobby had bought him to keep his stuff in.
The plaid pants were rather sentimental to him on several levels. One they were plaid, which he obviously had a serious illness to be wearing so much according to Bobby and two, they were what he was wearing the night he lost his home.
"But you don't even want to be a singer!" Bobby cried for the tenth time that morning. She'd been all gung ho about this being a big opportunity two days ago, but seeing him pack up his stuff was an entirely different story. The realisation was getting to her.
"I told you, it's the only way for us to start over again. If I have to do it as a robot singing pop star for the evil Gustavo Rocque I'm cool with it, okay?" Kendall said for the umpteenth time that morning.
"It's all my fault, I made you sing at the talent show- and now your leaving me." Bobby said quietly as she rummaged through her room for more of his stuff, as little as it was. He slept on the couch, and his sister and mum had the guest room so his stuff had to live somewhere. It was mainly clothes a few CDs and books.
He patted the side of her bed and she reluctantly sat down beside him. He put his arm around her and she thought she was going to cry again, but she didn't.
"Nothing will change I promise. I might even be back in three months. Besides you bought me a cell phone remember?" Kendall said as he nudged her in a joking manner.
"Well yes, and I want to receive a massively long phone bill that I caused thank you very much," she said jokingly as she started rummaging through her own bookcase with stuff to lend him. His selection was rather limited and she was trying to make his duffle bag heavier because right now, with him packing. It really did look like nothing. She didn't notice it as much when all there stuff was merged together like usual.
"I was hopping the almighty Gustavo Rocque could foot my phone bill," Kendall said smirking.
"Puh-leasee I have our phones linked up for free calls, so don't have to much fun with it or I'll kick your ass," Bobby said sarcastically.
"Hmmm should I take these?" Kendall asked jokingly uplifting the mood again as he held up a pair of well loved red vans Bobby had given him a year ago after she had worked two double shifts on a holiday.
"I'm surprised there not on your feet right now," Bobby said as she rolled her eyes.
**************BTR***************
"So this is California," Kendall said shortly as they got off the plane into the airport.
"Honey, please at least pretend you're excited. What if this singing thing actually works out for you?" Mrs. knight asked optimistically as they waited for the car that Gustavo's assistant Kelly said she would send for them.
Kendall shot her a disbelieving look and she sighed, "fine, just look interested enough for three months so I can find a job and us a real place to live."
"That I will do for yo-is that limo for us? There's gotta be another knight family in this airport." Kendall said looking around until he recognized Kelly, the assistant step out of it and beckon them over.
"Let's go get your luggage and then well head off to the hotel." Kelly said after a short greeting.
"We just have our carry on," Kendall stated.
"You are aware the demo will take three months right?" Kelly said starring at their small amount of luggage.
"We come from a long line of Buddhist monks, not many possessions and all that," Kendall said quickly as he chucked their bags in the boot.
Katie rolled her eyes at him but jumped excitedly into the limo followed by Mrs. Knight.
"Alright, will just head straight for the palm woods then." Kelly said looking up from her palm pilot momentarily to register what Kendall had just said.
******************BTR****************
"So this is where you'll be staying, the rooms are clean, it's not far from the studio and it has an amazing pool."
"Pool."
"Pool."
Kendall and Katie repeated to each other before they bolted out of the lobby towards the open door leading towards the pool.
Kendall smiled; this might have been worth it after all, well at least until someone tried to slap him in the face. He caught a flying hand millimeters from his cheek. He was suddenly standing very close to a girl in a theatrical dress; she looked surprised before composing herself.
"Can I help you?" he asked raising his eyebrows.
"Hey!" God what now?
"Is this guy bothering you Cam?"
Kendall looked up to see a rather tan and douchey looking guy staring him down from behind the girl.
Great, he'd been here two minutes and already made two friends: the slapper and the surfer boyfriend.
"Look your girlfriend tried to hit ME," Kendall said taking a step back. The girl scoffed, "I'm NOT his girlfriend, and I'm sorry about almost hitting you, I was in character, I've got an audition later." The girl said briefly in a friendly manner.
Like THAT made it okay.
"What as an abusive girlfriend?" Kendall said rolling his eyes as he turned away. He should probably get to their new apartment, where the devil was Katie?
"Hey new guy!" the surfer boy called out, Kendall stopped but didn't turn.
"Welcome to my Palmwoods."
Kendall grabbed Katie's arm on the way back to the lobby where his mum was waiting and tugged her a little to tightly.
"So how's the pool?"
"Arrogant, with a dash of crazy person, with annoyingly nice hair." Kendall said sarcastically as he grabbed his duffle bag and headed for the elevator.
"I thought it was nice, you know wet and blue." Katie said to her mum who nodded slowly in return satisfied with the normality of her response.
***********BTR************
"What on earth would that floppy haired mop be doing in Hollywood?" James asked out loud as he rubbed more sunscreen on a girls back. "I thought he was cute," the girl, Theresa said giggling at James' reaction; who frowned in return. He was about to respond to that ridiculous notion until he heard his phone ring. "You have James, Hey! Carlitos? Nah I'm not doing anything." He stood up and started walking towards the lobby.
"Soooooo, what's the verdict? Are you coming to live with me this summer?
"YES I knew it! Wait what? NO, no, no absolutely not. You can NOT bring the stick in the mud friend of… NO I'M your best friend. CARLOS... okay, okay fine you can bring Lo-GAIN."
*************BTR************
"This apartment,"
"Looks like our house," Kendall finished for Katie "and I mean the one that fell over." He added looking at his mum.
"It was the only one the manager would have us in. We don't exactly have a good credit check, and it was apparently the last one." She mumbled as she looked around, it wasn't too bad.
"He does know that's not OUR fault right?" Kendall asked gesturing to them with his arm before sighing. It was just like him to screw up their lives even when he wasn't there.
"But hey, we get our own rooms." Katie said changing the turn of the conversation. Kendall smiled in agreement as they both raced to a bedroom to put their stuff down in.
Kendall chucked his bag on the ground haphazardly and face planted into the bed. It was nice, calm and lumpy, but that was beside the point. It was quiet.
He sat there for a few minutes just listening to the sound of his own breathing. "Okay too quiet," he muttered before sitting up and rummaging through the pocket of his pants for his cell phone.
"Kendall?"
"The one and only."
"I'm not going to comment on that rather untrue statement. What has been a couple of hours?" Bobby's voice rang through the phone teasingly.
"It got quiet." Kendall stated simply, shrugging his shoulders as he looked around the small drab room. His room. It was weird without Bobby around all the time, he would just have to just get used to the quiet.
"My god, I'm going to be broke by morning. Soooo how is it?" He heard Bobby's excitement and the corner of his lips upturned.
"Just how'd you expect, nice weather, horrible arrogant people who have very shinny hair and crazy girls who slap you, you know the works." He said lightly as he flopped back down on his bed.
"But there is a nice pool."
"Well that IS the main thing," Bobby said in agreement before laughing, "so the weathers nice…."
"That's really what you're taking from that?"
"I miss you."
"You too."
********BTR*********
Kendall was nervous. He'd been singing and dancing with the terrifying Gustavo Rocque for two days now and he hated it. He had been violated in many disturbing ways by the stylists and the whims of the marketing team and couldn't understand anything Mr. X said when he added X to the end of everything.
Kendall knew it was all becoming too much when he asked for X-cereal this morning. Hollywood was officially frying his brain, in a I-can-cook-an-egg-outside-on-the-ground kind of way… man it was hot. To make matters worse he hadn't spent anytime at the pool since the day he got there and was called out on by Malibu Ken.
And yes he meant the shinny haired guy who's tan would obviously given him skin cancer who Kendall had sworn revenge on.
Today didn't seem anymore appealing. He had to perform for the CEO of the company, Arthur Griffin, who would decide whether he could make his demo or not.
"But I thought I already WAS making a demo," Kendall said sighing as he drank from his bottle of water on his break, exhausted from all the dancing and singing he'd already done that morning.
"Yes. But Griffin is INSANE and I have to do WHAT HE SAYS OKAY? And if you don't start acting like you WANT THIS, you and your little family are on a one way ticket back to Cornville tomorrow!" Gustavo yelled and Kendall visibly flinched as watched Gustavo kick the vase off the side table next to him and shatter into a hundred pieces.
"I'm from Kansas." Kendall couldn't help but retort smirking, he somewhat liked that he could make Gustavo's face turn a certain shade of red.
By four, Kendall had swallowed up all his manly pride and decided he would buck up and sing the stupid girl time song and dance like an idiot in front of the CEO like he cared. He had to at least try or all this would have been for nothing right? He hadn't been singing and dancing like a show pony and worn an Uncle Sam's outfit to just quit.
Besides Bobby would kick his ass if he came back after three days and there would be teasing…. merciless, merciless teasing. Especially about the questionably tight pants he'd worn yesterday and Katie had snapped a picture of.
Stupid stylists.
*****************BTR*****************
"But Carlosss," Logan whined as he tried to stop Carlos from putting another piece of clothing into his bag.
"James is YOUR friend, I'll be fine here on my own for four months I promise." Logan pleaded but was obviously not getting through the Latino boy.
"You've hung out with James loads! You guys are totally friends!" Carlos justifies as he snatches Logan's bag out of his reach.
"I am NOT friend's with that heartless Neanderthal." Logan said rolling his eyes.
"I don't know what that means but I'm sure it wasn't very nice Logie, besides your MY best friend too, there's no way I can leave you for four months, here of all places." Carlos pulled a face as he looked around the empty barracks.
Summer break was starting and most of the cadets had already jumped on their extended holidays. The George Washington military academy had limited breaks during the year and gave four months leave for students to spend with their families, which were often across state.
"Remind me again why YOU'RE not flying home to see your family?" Logan asked raising a brow at Carlos.
In this past year Logan and Carlos had made fast friends. He knew that Carlos was close to his family or at least that he used to be.
Logan and Carlos benefitted each other symbiotically as Logan liked to call it. Carlos helped Logan stand his ground and Logan helped Carlos with his homework. They still hadn't figured out how to quite do that on their own yet.
"There was some... er tension," Carlos starts uncomfortably and then smiles when Logan raises his eyebrows approvingly at his choice of word being used correctly.
"About school, it's not important." Carlos mumbled. "But this is, for me." Carlos gestured to Logan's bag and pulled the biggest puppy dog eyes he could muster.
"Oh no. No, no, no." Logan stated quickly covering his eyes protectively.
"Please Logie? Your mum won't care and your dads a zillion miles away," Carlos countered not dropping his expression.
Logan chanced a look at Carlos and regretted his decision. And he called himself smart... He was just outwitted by a boy who owned bunny pajamas.
"Fineeee"
"Hooray! I'm calling James."
***********BTR***************
"He's great, now make it a group."
"I'm sorry, make it a what Griffin?" Gustavo asked incredulously after Kendall finished his performance. He pulled a horrified expression, was nothing ever simple with this man?
"A group. I want a band. Make it happen." griffon stood up,
"You told me pop star, as in SINGULAR?" Gustavo complained removing his bug-eyed glasses irritated.
"Well I've changed my mind. Do it and you can have your demo or you and your studio are finished...I have to go, my pants are going cold."
And with one sweeping motion Griffin left the studio with his two assistants. He may have left behind a pair of cold pants but that's beside the point.
"Well, what he say?" Kendall asked irritated after watching the exchange in mute behind the recording glass, he wasn't quite sure what to make of it out of context.
It could go either way really…
"You're becoming a band." Gustavo said into the microphone before leaving the booth slamming the door.
"Gustavo! Wait! What does that even mean? Gustavo!"
Continue? Don't? It's the first chapter so it's a lot of explaining I know :P It'll make more sense later. Review and let me know if you want more. I've got some interesting ideas planned for this story so feedback would be awesome