Gustavo has been working us non-stop, and it's starting to become unbearable.

We have our next concert coming up in a few days, so he was putting us through three hours of practicing songs, three hours of dance rehearsals, and three more hours of "performing" every day. That's nine hours a day, with a thirty minute break between. I'm thoroughly convinced he's trying to kill us.

We're currently sprawled out on the couches in our break room after a three hour dance rehearsal. Kendall and Logan are bitching about Gustavo's stupidly strict schedule, and Carlos is nibbling on a corndog. I'm sure he would've been stuffing his face if we didn't have to go out to dance some more in the next few minutes. We're all starving. I don't think we've actually eaten real food in days. I know I haven't.

It's not like I'm starving myself, but you know how after you exercise for a while you don't want to eat? … Maybe not. Well, that's what I've felt like the past few days. I'm sure if I tried to eat, it'd just come back up. Right now, I can barely keep down water. I should tell Logan, but I don't want the guys to worry.

"James? You alright, man?" Kendall asked. I lifted my arm off my eyes and peeked out from under it at them. They were all looking at me with concern.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just didn't sleep much last night," I reassured them. Logan looked like he wanted to argue, but he was cut off by Gustavo.

"DOGS! IN THE DANCE ROOM! NOW!" the slave of Satan yelled.

We groaned and got to our feet. I reached out to grab the back of the couch, closing my eyes and waiting for the sudden dizziness to pass. I probably just stood up to fast…

Logan was grumbling about 'fucking Gustavo and his fucking slave driving schedule' under his breath the whole way to the room.

The slave driver himself had us immediately start "performing", starting with "Elevate" and the doing "Love Me Love Me" before going to our newest song "Featuring You". I didn't have any solos in our new song, so the guys were less likely to tell that I was a few beats behind them. It was all I could do to keep dancing when the room started beginning to spin somewhere in "Love Me Love Me" and steadily got faster.

Gustavo decided that since the fans loved our backflips in "Big Time Rush", Logan and I were going to do another one at the end of "Featuring You". At this point, it was all I could do to keep standing. I knew I probably wouldn't be able to do the flip, but I had to try anyway.

I got around fine, but my landing was horrible. I landed on my feet, but stumbled backwards a few steps before completely falling backwards, hitting the floor hard.

"James!" the guys chorused, and ran over to me.

I tried to sit up, but I realized this was a terrible idea when my head started spinning even faster. Kendall helped me sit up, and leaned on him, burying my face in his side to keep the world from spinning.

"James? You okay, buddy?" Logan asked, resting his hand on my back. I simply groaned in response and burrowed deeper into my best friend's side.

I felt a cool hand on my forehead and someone let out a soft gasp. "Jay, you're burning up," Carlos said. "Why didn't you tell us you were sick?"

"Dogs! What's wrong with James?" Gustavo yelled, and I immediately felt Kendall switch into protective big brother mode.

"He's sick Gustavo. We need to go home," He argued. "Our performance is nearly flawless. We'll be fine on tour if we miss a few days of last minute rehearsal."

Instead of Gustavo answering, it was Kelly. "Boys, go home and get some rest. We'll see you in a few days for the tour," she said. I guess she was able to get Gustavo to go along with it. Thank God.

We stood up, and I immediately felt dizzy and nauseous. Kendall tightened his hold on me, and I leaned on him heavily.

I have no idea how we got to the limo, but once we were moving I immediately regretting ever getting into it. The constant rocking motion was just making my sick felling worse. I moaned and resumed my earlier position with my face buried in my brother's side.

Kendall POV

I held James tighter once the limo started moving. He looked pretty nauseous before we even started moving, and I hoped for his sake that he wouldn't puke in the car. I know he would beat himself up about it if he did.

He let out another moan when we rounded the turn into the Palm Woods parking lot. I held him tighter while Logan and Carlos simultaneously squeezed his shoulder and knee.

I helped I'm out of the limo, catching him as his knees gave out. Logan suggested we just sit on the sidewalk for a few minutes until James is less dizzy, so I lowered him to the concrete and soothingly stroked his hair. He didn't seem to be fully aware of his surroundings, and that worried me.

After about five minutes of a shaking and unresponsive James, we decided we needed to get him to the apartment sooner rather than later. I carefully helped him stand up and helped him through the lobby and onto the elevator. The elevator was evidently a really bad idea once I felt his breathing become harsh and ragged.

I didn't even have to ask. Once we stepped through the door to 2J I half-carried half-dragged him over to the bathroom and deposited him in front of the toilet, where he immediately emptied the contents of his stomach. I crouched down next to him, and rubbed his back soothing, trying to calm him down.

Logan came rushing into the room with a wet washcloth, a glass of water, and some Tylenol with Carlos in tow.

James flushed the toilet, muttering a quiet "sorry" before lying down on the floor to rest his face against the cool tile. Logan sat down next to him and ran his fingers through James' hair a few times.

"Don't say sorry, Jamie. It's not your fault you're sick. If you're going to blame anyone, blame Gustavo. He's the one that's been working us non-stop for the past week," he said. "Now I need to sit up for a few minutes, okay?" Logan asked.

James nodded and I helped him into a sitting position. Logan handed him the water and the pills. "Take little sips," he instructed.

James nodded and slowly swallowed the pills, carefully sipping at the water. After a few sips, he set the water down and just leaned against me, trying to catch his breath. "Come on, Jay. Let's get you in bed. You'll be comfier there," I said.

He just nodded, but didn't make any attempt to move. I sighed and helped him stand up again. That's how you knew when James was really sick. He got clingy and unresponsive.

"Come on, Jay. I'll help," I said, standing up with him practically attached to me. We walked into our room and I laid him down on his bed. Logan placed the wet washcloth on his forehead, and we all sat with him until he fell asleep. He was sick now, but I know he'll be fine in a few days. And we're his brothers. We'll stick together no matter what.

Yes. The ending sucks. I had no idea how to end this thing, so that's what you got. Well, let me know what you think any way? And the next chapter of Secrets should be up by tomorrow. If you haven't yet, you should. I'm proud of it. :P

And yes, I do actually smile and squeal every time I get a review. Who wants to make me do it in the middle of class? ;P

~ Nikki