Comfort

NOTES FROM LAUREN NICOLE: Is this a new story? I believe it is!=D Yay! So this started off as a different story, but I didn't like where it was going, so I cut part of it out, and we have this precious little thing! I'm thinking about rewriting the stuff that I cut out and using it as a new one-shot, but I'm not sure yet. So until I figure that out, here's this! The style of this was inspired by CheekyBrunette's "A Lot to Love" because of how each chapter is about a different guy. Yup, that means there are only 4 chapters, or maybe I'll only do 2. They're all about how the guys all find comfort. This first one is about Carlos=) I hope you like it! =)

All of the guys, and even Mrs. Knight and Katie, knew that anything having to do with Carlos' brother was a sensitive subject for him. Carlos had been devastated when Miguel had left for college 3 years ago. The two brothers had been very close, and Carlos wasn't used to not seeing him everyday. The day Miguel was leaving, Carlos had been really depressed, and he refused to come out of his room. He had probably cried more that day than any other day in his 12 years.

There was a knock at the door. He put his hands on helmet, which he had strapped on in an attempt to find comfort.

"Go away!" Carlos yelled into his tear stained pillow.

"Carlos, it's me." A familiar voice said through the door. "Can I come in?" Carlos sat up on his bed and wiped his face with his hands.

"Ye-yeah." He hiccupped. Miguel walked in and sat on the bed next to the sobbing boy. The 18 year old put his hand on Carlos' trembling shoulder.

"Carlos, come on, it's ok." Miguel said in a soothing voice.

"Miguel, do you have to go away to college?" Carlos asked, his brown eyes big and pleading. Miguel nodded grimly and inhaled deeply.

"I'm sorry. I'm gonna miss you." Miguel looked at Carlos forlornly. Carlos blinked back a rush of tears and threw his arms around Miguel's waist, burying his face in his dark grey hoodie.

"I-I don-n't want y-you to leave!" Carlos stuttered, his face glistening with tears that had slipped out.

"I know. I don't want to, but I have to." Miguel sighed. He pulled Carlos in closer and cradled the younger box in his lap. Carlos clung to Miguel's sweatshirt. The brothers sat in silence, and Carlos, exhausted from crying so much, fell asleep. Miguel didn't move for a few minutes, but Mrs. Garcia came up to tell him that it was time to go.

He carefully undid Carlos' grip on his sweatshirt. Miguel laid Carlos' helmeted head on the pillow and took off his dark grey hoodie. He laid it next to Carlos and whispered a goodbye. Miguel gently put his hand on Carlos' helmet and walked out the door, pulling it closed behind him.

Carlos had woken up nearly 3 hours later to find Miguel gone, and his grey sweatshirt lying next to him. He straightened his helmet and pulled the hoodie on. It hung loosely off his body. Carlos had always been small for his age, and Miguel was 6 years older than him. Even now, 4 years later, the worn-out dark grey sweatshirt still didn't fit correctly. This didn't bother Carlos though.

It had been the middle of August when Miguel left, but Carlos still wore that hoodie for 3 straight weeks, refusing to take it off. He started wearing his helmet more often as well, only taking it off to shower. His parents and the guys did whatever they could to try and help Carlos. After almost a month, Carlos had become less and less attached to the sweatshirt. He wouldn't wear it as often. But if he had been having a rough day, the grey hoodie was his release, and he could be found sitting on the couch or in his room with it on.

Just because Carlos had stopped constantly wearing the hoodie, didn't mean that he had abandoned it. On the first day of middle school, the same year that Miguel had left, Carlos' backpack had been abnormally bulging. The guys didn't ask why, but Kendall had a feeling he knew what was inside. His suspicions were confirmed when he saw a dark grey ball of fabric in his bag during class, when Carlos was pulling out a book. Kendall didn't say anything about seeing it.

Only Carlos' mom and dad knew that he slept with the sweatshirt every night. When it was cold, he wore it, and when it was warmer, he clung to it. That hoodie, like his helmet, was like a security blanket. It gave him a feeling of comfort and protection and it reminded him of what made him happiest-Being with Miguel.

For a while, if anything was changing in Carlos' life, you could expect to see that dark grey sweatshirt. While he was in college, Miguel had met a girl, Vanessa. They had gotten married 2 months ago, and Carlos was the best man. It took Kendall, Logan, James, Katie, Mrs. Knight, Miguel, and Mr. and Mrs. Garcia to convince him that he couldn't wear the sweatshirt over his tux.

After 15 minutes of whining and arguing, they were finally able to make a deal with Carlos. He wouldn't wear the sweatshirt, but Logan would hold it while he sat in the pews with the others. Thankfully, Miguel let him wear his helmet. The guys sighed in relief. They were worried that without some kind of comfort, Carlos might now have made it to the reception. At least the black helmet matched his suit.

On the day that the boys left Minnesota to pursue James' dream in LA, Carlos was ready to go. He had Miguel's sweatshirt on when they boarded the plane, and he wore it to their first rehearsals. Carlos needed that sweatshirt like he needed his helmet. It was part of him and without it, he was lost. Even now, 4 years after the day he got it, Carlos still has the hoodie.

His helmet was more of a constant companion than his sweatshirt. He always found more comfort in the piece of black plastic, because he had it longer than Miguel's hoodie. But he loved them both. And the guys knew this. They never judged or criticized Carlos because of them, and wouldn't let anyone say anything about them. Carlos knew that it was probably ridiculous for a 16 year old boy to still have security things. He knew that probably nobody else on the planet did. But he didn't care. He knew that his friends didn't care. He knew that Katie wouldn't make any comments, and he knew that Mrs. Knight wouldn't try to force him to give them up. Carlos knew that his "family" supported him 100% and only wanted for him what he wanted.

Carlos sweatshirt was one of the most important things that he owned, no matter how worn-out it was.

NOTES FROM LAUREN NICOLE: What'd you think? I don't know if this was one of my better pieces. I worked a long time on it (if you don't believe me, just ask Ruby Grand. She'll tell ya how I worked on it for like 2 weeks!) but I'm not sure how good it turned out. I feel like it's a little over done, with the cutesiness. I don't know! I hope you guys liked it! Ruby Grand, EnglandGKT, and JennRenee97 told me that it sounded good, so I'm going to believe them and pray that it sounds good. Next chapter~ It's Kendall's turn!=D Yay! Then probably James, then Logan if I decide to do all of them. I think Logan will be toughest to write. I'll probably update "I'm Not Sick!" next because I have written that in a while. So, until next time!

~LaurenNicole