LoveSparkle: Man, you're so fricking cool, you review on all my stuff and I love you. :D And of COURSE Logan sounds sexy- that's how I made him! You have to love a man with a lip ring, dimples, and extra long-sleeved hoodies. :)

Addie sat at the bar with Rachael, the bar tender, as I plugged in my acoustic guitar to the amp on stage. I had to pick up this gig at my dad's bar- Knight's Bar and Grill- for a little extra cash, and Logan was stuck at school, so I had to take Addie here with me. It wasn't the ideal place for a five-year-old-girl, but I knew the bartender and she promised to watch Addie while I performed. Besides, Addie was drawing even more pictures for Carlos- she was okay for the next hour. She was excited to be taking him home tomorrow, and I was ecstatic.

There wasn't much of a crowd, but there were a few tables filled with people there for dinner and there were some people at the bar, so the show must go on. I think it was a good audience for my first performance.

"Hey, everyone," I said into the mic. "My name's Kendall Knight and I'll be your entertainment tonight."

"Hi, Kendall!" some sarcastic bastard yelled and I had to laugh a little and salute.

"Yaaaay! Go Daddy!" I heard Addie cheer and I laughed and waved at her.

"This first song's called 'Love Letter' and I wrote it for my husband years and years ago," I said. "Here it goes."

What little nerves I had about the show disappeared as I started singing and playing. It was a faster, exciting song and I thought it might grab people's attention.

At the end of the song, a got a few applause, not counting Addie at the bar cheering and yelling.

"By the way, that's my daughter over there," I said, thinking maybe I could get some pity tips if I told them a little story I like to call "my life". "She's five. My husband is in the hospital now, he had to get a kidney transplant because he had cancer. I'm here hoping to make a little extra cash, obviously, because that operation wasn't cheap."

I played a lot of songs and got some tips of dollars or five dollar bills in my guitar case. I distinctly remember looking up and noting that someone had entered, someone tall and alone, but I couldn't quite see his face.

I was forty-five minutes in and ran out of songs.

"Any requests?" I asked, embarrassed.

A tall man, about my age and very handsome, I must add, came up to the stage and dropped a twenty in my guitar case.

"How about 'When I Was Your Man' by Bruno Mars?" he asked with a charming grin. He was very tall with straight, white teeth, tan skin, and glowing hazel eyes to kill. His hair was short and made up, his frame built and muscular beneath a leather jacket. Okay, yes, I was happily married. But he WAS attractive, and I would say this is Carlos' face, just like he points out hot guys to me all the time and I agree or disagree. So this nameless stranger will be called "Mr. Dreamy".

His wink flattered me to no end. To be fair, I hadn't said anything about Addie or Carlos since the first five minutes of the performance, so he didn't know about them. To him, I was just some sexy guy with a guitar asking for requests on songs.

Mr. Dreamy sat at the bar with a bottle of beer and watched me as I sang his song. I had never put that with guitar music, but I had to wing it. The guy DID give me an unnecessary 20 dollar bill.

He watched me with cool hazel eyes which speculated every detail- my fingers on the guitar, my mouth moving, and my clothes. Every time I made eye contact, he bit his perfect pink lip flirtatiously and I had to try not to blush. Yes, I was a happily married man. But everyone loves to be flirted with.

After a few songs, I saw Mr. Dreamy down the last few sips of his beer and put some money on the bar, getting up. I noticed that he didn't flirt with or check out Rachael, which every straight man ever did, so I had to assume he was gay or just not into hot women. He gave me a little mischievous smile before waltzing out the door.

By the time my hour was up I thought nothing more of him as I folded up the 30 dollars of tips I made and put it into my pocket, packing up my guitar.

"You did good, Daddy," Addie said, standing on her bar stool as I approached.

"Thanks, Pumpkin," I grinned, hugging the girl who was suddenly taller than me. I lifted her off of the stool and sat in her place, her in my lap.

"She was a doll, Mr. Knight," Rachael said. She wore unnecessarily thick makeup and low-cut shirts, but I guess she had to make tips somehow.

"Call me Kendall." I knew she was sucking up since I was her employer's son, but it was unnecessary.

"I call him Daddy," Addie said cutely. I couldn't help but kiss her freckly cheek at that, then she turned her face for a kiss on the puckered up lips. Jesus, she kissed like Carlos had when we first started dating.

"Oh! I drawed you on the stage!" Addie said in remembrance, and she sat on my lap to sift through her endless drawings. I knew I should be correcting her grammar like Carlos did, but I thought it was adorable. "Here it is!"

She showed me a drawing of a kind of creepy looking guy with yellow hair and green dots for eyes, holding a guitar, messy music notes around the paper.

"I love it!" I said.

"And I drawed a piture for Rachael, too, see, she put it up over there," Addie said excitedly, pointing to a piece of paper taped to the side of the soda machine. It was of an elephant, which was really more of a circle with stick legs and a trunk, on a skateboard. I was just grateful that she didn't draw a portrait of Rachael and her big jugs, to be honest.

"You're so sweet."

"You should write a song for me!" Addie said randomly.

"I HAVE wrote a song for you, Pumpkin. Remember? It's called 'Cover Girl'?"

"Eh… How's it go?"

As soon as I started singing, she lit up and nodded.

"Yeah! I like that one. But you should write me another one about- about a grape that loses its family in the fridge-el-ator. And so he goes to find them, and he meets a lot of other food that helps him find his family, and when he gets there, all his family is ate!"

"That sounds like a sad song," I said, distraught. Every once in a while, she comes up with something REALLY disturbing and I have to consider taking her to a therapist.

"No, cause then he gets ate, too, and they all live together in the person's tummy!"

I just loved her imagination.

"Oh. Then I guess it's a happy song after all," I smiled.

"Will you write it?"

"I'm busy now, baby, but I'll try soon."

I knew that she would forget about her request in five minutes and think nothing more of it, so I wasn't worried.

The whole time Carlos was talking to me I kept thinking about Mr. Dreamy. I know, it's horrible, but to be fair I have had zero sexual activity for a REALLY long time, and I was sort of pathetic.

"And then I pulled out my knife and slashed the nurse's throat and drank all her blood," Carlos said, snapping me out of my trance. He always does that when he knows I'm not paying attention- he goes off into an imaginary story to get my attention.

"You did?" Addie gasped, Carlos' fingers in her hair as he braided it.

"No, baby, your daddy's just not listening to me," Carlos said sternly.

"Sorry. I'm just tired," I grumbled. It was the end of the night and I was supposed to be leaving soon. Fatigue stung my eyes every time I blinked and my muscles ached for a bed and sleep. I knew Addie was exhausted, too, but she could NOT sleep while she was visiting Daddy!

"What are you thinking about?"

"Just this random guy that gave me a twenty dollar tip at the bar," I shrugged. "Random guy" seemed like an understatement, but I really shouldn't be bragging about him to my husband. Besides- I'd never see him again, right?

"Was he hot?"

"I mean, if you like tall, dark, and handsome types," I shrugged casually.

"Well if you're thinking about him, he must be gorgeous."

"Not as gorgeous as you, and I think about YOU all the time. So he doesn't matter."

"That was smooth."

"It's what I do," I shrugged and winked.

"Attention, visiting time is over, all visitors must leave the rooms," the woman said over the intercom to the whole hospital.

"I don't wanna go," Addie pouted as Carlos secured her braid with a ponytail holder.

"When you come back from school tomorrow, I'll be home, sweetie," Carlos said as Addie turned and hugged him gently, ruffling the pile of drawings that sat beside Carlos on the bed.

"I wanna help you get there, though."

"You have to go to school and learn more colors, baby, so we can practice with our markers," Carlos said. She backed away to give him a sloppy kiss and rub her little nose with his before I lifted her off the bed. "Sweet dreams!"

Addie gave him a sad look and put her coat on as I kissed Carlos goodbye.

"I'll see you at 8," I said before kissing him again. The thought of getting up at 6:30 to get Addie ready for school and take her seemed like a nightmare to me- I wanted to just sleep until mid-afternoon. I guess I was so tired, not only because I had been busy that day, but also because I was stressed. What, with Carlos in the hospital and Addie being souly my responsibility, of course I was stressed out.

"Logie'll be over to pick you up at noon, just like usual," I said as I pulled up to the car lane at the elementary school.

"Not you?"

"Nope- I have to stay and take care of Daddy."

I got out of the van and unbuckled her from her car seat, helping her hop out, her big purple coat on with her pink backpack jingling with key chains. I had managed to get her hair into a ponytail, but a few tiny ringlets had escaped and fell over her pale forehead. I bent to gave her a kiss and rub my nose with hers before she ran off with her friends.

I smiled a little and watched her disappear into the school before someone honked at me to move my car, and I scrambled back into the driver's seat to meet Logan at the hospital.

I wasn't like those moms that homeschooled their kids because they were afraid that their precious prodigy would get a disease or get hurt on the playground at school. For one, Carlos was the mom, I was the dad- duh. For two, I knew that school was important for a kid's development, and I knew she probably got a few teases for her hair and her freckles and her two daddies, but she was strong and able to make friends with her bullies. But still, I hated that my little girl was growing up, and even if it was just preschool until noon, she was now bathing herself and dressing herself and pouring her own milk- that's a sad realization for every parent.

I was a little upset to find that I was late and Logan was already waiting outside of the hospital with Carlos in a wheelchair in front of him.

I pulled up to the pick-up section and got out to open the van door. Yes, we had a van, even though we only had one kid. But it was my mom's and she gave it to us when she got a new car, so who was I to complain?

"Sorry I'm late," I said as Logan wheeled Carlos up to the open door.

"You're not late- Logie was early," Carlos said with a shrug.

"You already signed all the papers and stuff?"

"Yup. Taken care of."

It took a while for Carlos to get into the car- his lower back was very sore from his surgery and we had to be careful of his stitches. Logan sat beside him in the midsection and I drove, careful of speed-bumps and potholes.

I had to smile a little when I looked in the mirror to see Carlos watching everything go by outside the window, his hand casually linked with Logan's. I should be defensive about that, but I'm not. Besides, every time I would bring it up, Logan would say "He was mine first- you don't like it, you can get over it."

"Can we get McDonald's?" Carlos asked excitedly, looking at me through the rearview mirror.

"Are you gonna be able to keep that down?" Logan asked doubtfully.

"Duh. I've got an iron stomach."

I knew that when you had kidney problems you could potentially throw up a lot, and with Carlos' new kidney I didn't know how real food would work with him. He's eaten minimally and had an IV drip for the past few days. But I knew how much he loved those breakfast McGrittles.

"Oooh," Carlos groaned from his nest in our bed. "Kenny, my tummy hurts."

"Probably because you ate three McGrittles, honey," I sang, gently laying another blanket over him.

"I was so hungry."

Logan was lying on my side of the bed, the right side, with his arm behind his head, chewing on his lip ring as he watched TV.

"Are you hot? Cold?" I asked Carlos.

"I'm okay, baby, my tummy just hurts."

"Are you gonna throw up?"

"No."

"Should I get the trash can in case?"

"What if I do? That would hurt so bad!" Carlos said in horror. I could just imagine him having to jerk to the side, his stitches potentially ripping as he heaved.

"I'll get some Pepto."

After I gave him some medicine to try to ease his stomach, Logan scooted over to his left to be beside Carlos as I lay beside him.

"Are you singing at the bar tonight?" Logan asked, head falling to its right to look at me with wise black eyes. Those eyes were even darker than Carlos'- and Carlos was Latino. I think they may be the same shade as Addie's, if not darker.

"Yeah. At 6."

"How does that pay?"

"Normally 60 bucks, but since it's my dad he gives me 75. Since he knows what I'm working with here. Plus tips- I got 30 bucks last night, and that was really early dinner, so maybe I'll get more tonight when it's later."

"Maybe the guy that gave you a twenty will come again," Carlos said. "Unless he's into you, in which case he's gonna have to pay a little more than that."

I dared not say anything about Mr. Dreamy's wink, or the way he watched me move, or the bite of his lip upon eye contact. It might hurt him, and I knew Logan would get mad.

"A guy gave you a twenty?" Logan asked me.

"Yeah- it's no big deal."

"He was hot," Carlos said. Dammit, Carlos! Not in front of Logan! Logan had a thing for being overprotective of Carlos, and if he knew that I said that the guy was attractive-

"Hot?" Logan snapped.

"I mean, he was reasonably attractive," I reasoned.

"Would you fuck him?"

"Logie!" Carlos laughed. "He said that I'm prettier and he doesn't matter- he's off the hook."

Logan shot me a look before turning back to the TV.

I hated the sound of my sweet Carlos puking his guts out so violently, and the echo effect of the bathroom didn't help. I kneeled on the floor beside him, stroking his back, his stitches bandaged up beneath his t-shirt. I looked over and was grateful to find that Logan had taken Addie elsewhere. I didn't want her to see Carlos being sick, because I knew this wasn't a stomach bug- it was his REAL sickness, and it was only the beginning.

"Make it stop," Carlos sobbed as I reached over to flush. I knew he was in excruciating pain because of his stitches and soreness, plus the pain of vomiting.

His stomach lurched again and I winced as he leaned over the toilet again, rubbing the hair on the back of his head.

Finally, after a while, he finished and I stood to wet a wash cloth with warm water as he painfully sat back against the cold wall. I knelt beside him and wiped his mouth gingerly, then folded the rag and wiped up his tears. I then rinsed it in cold water and dabbed his forehead.

"I-It's just the medicine that's making me queasy," he said, more to himself than me.

"I know, baby," I said softly, although I disagreed.

"I'll be okay."

"I know."

"…Right?"

"Right."

"Kenny?"

"Yes, sweetheart?"

"I'm so scared," Carlos said, the fear in his voice breaking my heart. I knew what he was afraid of- that the cancer, the surgeries, weren't over.

"Me, too," I whispered. "But like you said- it's just the meds."

"You should get ready for your show."

"I'm not going. I have to take care of you."

"I have Logie and Ad," Carlos said. "But if you come home and Logie's cuddling with me, just toss him on the floor and take his spot."

"Okay," I laughed.

"But be careful- don't break him. And don't break me, either- I hurt."

"I'll be gentle."

"Oh, but if Addie's there, don't throw her on the ground."

"I won't," I laughed. "Are you loopy?"

"I'm tired. And on pain meds. AND I'm Carlos. Of course I'm loopy."

"How does your stomach feel?"

"Okay I guess."

I got Carlos back laying in the bed and Addie brought him water before cuddling up to his side and telling him a story about why she thought he threw up.

"The food in your belly was having a war. They got their guns out and was shooting each other, cause one side thought THEY were yummier, but the other side thought that THEY were yummier. But then the queen food came and said that they shouldn't fight, but the foods all told her that they WANTED to. And so the queen kicked them all out of her castle because she doesn't like fighting, and that's why you got sick."

"I think that's exactly why," Carlos smiled to himself. "But I think I accidentally threw up the queen, too."

"Oh, no. Now who'll run the castle?"

"I'm sure they'll find a new queen."

I knew that Addie always cheered Carlos up with her stories and drawings and even just her bright smile. It was hard not to love her, and she never failed to be everyone's sunshine.

After an hour I had to get up and get pretty for my show, leaving Carlos and Addie asleep on the bed, Logan gnawing at his lip ring and playing on his phone on the floor.

Thank you all for the reviews and follows and favorites I got on the first chapter! I hope you continue to support this- it'll get good soon! I just had to show you the Kenlos relationship first. :D

By the way, "Love Letter" is a Heffron Drive song. I'm not a Driver at all, but I listened to that song and I LOVE the chorus to it. Of course their songs are good, but I just haven't really gotten around to really listening to them. AND "Love Letter" has a crazy rapping part that Dustin does. Man, I'm pretty sure Dustin's just as dreamy as Kendall is, just cause he's so dumb and talented and funny. He's especially attractive without the long Dustache, sorry to say it, just cause his Dustache is his pride and joy, but he is.

Okay, author's note complete.