Well, I feel like a terrible author since I haven't updated in a year. I honestly don't know why it's taken me this long to update. SO sorry about the unannounced hiatus, guys. I'll try my best not to let that happen again. Thanks for your reviews and positive feedback, I loved reading it all. I'm definitely going to follow this story through to the end, no matter how long it takes me (which, I'll admit, I haven't done all the time in the past). I have the whole thing mapped out in my head— I day-dreamed up the entire story in about a day. It's just about getting it typed up. And since I'm a full-time college student, that may take longer than I'm hoping. I'm not sure how often I'll be able to update, but one thing I'm promising is that I'll work on this as much as possible- and I will finish it.

And just to address some things: I have no intentions of establishing romantic relationships between the guys in this story. They're pretty much strictly best friends. But I have added a few elements to the story that could suggest romantic feelings between some of them… just slightly. And if you want to interpret it that way, feel free. It's just not the direction I'm going in.

Okay. Finally onto the second chapter. This is in James' POV, and it'll cover all the same events that the first chapter covered. Hope you enjoy!

*Rest in peace to all of the victims of the 9/11 attacks*

James' POV

"So everybody get up, up, outta your seats…"

James stirred only slightly at the distant sound of his alarm clock, his body still in a deep sleep.

"…kick off your shoes like you're down at the beach…"

His brain was beginning to wake up, though. In his dream-like state, he thought he recognized the song that he was hearing. It was a moment before he realized that, obviously he knew the song, he'd have to be really thick not to be able to recognize a song that his band had originated and performed.

"…jump up, up, up on the beat, singing ayo, ayo, ayo…"

James groaned, annoyed now. He felt no desire to move from his perfectly comfortable position in his perfectly warm bed. He would just close his eyes for another minute, maybe five, and then he would get up…

"…up, up, outta your seats, be who you are, love is all you need…"

But he couldn't do it; there was a reason that this song was his alarm. It motivated him to get out of bed, and it motivated him to do a lot of other stuff, too. There was something about hearing him and his friends telling him to get up and singing about ruling the world that James just couldn't ignore, no matter how hard he tried (and, yes, he had tried).

So he sighed deeply, rolled onto his stomach, and looked at the clock. It read 8:50 AM. He rolled the rest of the way out of bed and let the chorus of the song play out.

"…all of us geeks, freaks, and wannabes, singing ayo, if I ruled the world

I would give it, give it all to you, give it, give it, give it all to you

I would give it, give it all to you, give it, give it, give it all to you."

Finally hitting the "off" button on the alarm clock, James grabbed the remote for his TV and turned it on. He flipped through a few channels before wandering over to his dresser and digging through his drawers, looking for something to wear.

He had just gone into his bathroom, intending to shower, when he heard a sudden jingling noise coming from the TV. He recognized this sound as the one that the local news station played whenever there was breaking news. Curious, he turned and looked out into his bedroom at the TV.

"Breaking news update, live from New York City. The North Tower of the World Trade Center is on fire."

James frowned and walked back into his bedroom, his attention now solely on the news report. The World Trade Center appeared on his screen. Dark smoke was billowing from an oddly-shaped gap in the North Tower's side, and orange flames could be seen licking the walls. James' eyes widened. This can't be good, he thought. He walked over to his bed and sank into a sitting position, never taking his eyes from the TV.

"There appears to be a large hole in the side of the building, affecting what is estimated to be the ninetieth floor and above. No word yet on what caused the fire, or on possible evacuations for the South Tower. We'll be sure to keep an eye on this story as it develops, but for now, back to the weather."

James was disappointed. How could the station not stay with that story? He wanted to keep hearing about what was going on in New York. So he took the remote and changed the channel to CNN, knowing that the national station would be covering the story.

Sure enough, the World Trade Center popped onto his screen once more. Unlike the LA station, however, CNN seemed to have gotten information on how the fire in the North Tower had started: "…crashed into the building. Again, folks, if you're just now joining us, the word is that eyewitnesses have reported a plane flying into the North Tower little more than ten minutes ago."

James' jaw dropped. A plane, crash into the World Trade Center?! He couldn't believe it. How was that possible? Why would a plane be flying that low to begin with? A pilot would have to be blind not to see those towers looming, anyone with eyes would be able to avoid colliding with one of those monstrous buildings.

He could hear sirens through the TV, and the camera shot briefly to the streets of New York City, where police cars and fire engines and ambulances all made their way to the World Trade Center to try to remedy the situation in the North Tower. A glimpse of a hook-and-ladder engine on his screen made James freeze up as a jarring thought came to his mind: Logan was a fire fighter in New York City. James knew that Logan worked an early shift, and his heart skipped a beat as he realized that that meant his best friend was likely rushing to the World Trade Center, along with every other firefighter in New York.

James barely had time to start worrying about Logan before he realized an even more terrifying fact: Kendall, another of his best friends, worked on the eighty-first floor of the North Tower.

"Oh, my God," James said aloud, tensing up as worry began to consume him. He stared at his TV screen in horror, seemingly frozen by his realizations and by the situation as a whole.

Kendall's in there, James thought, Oh my God. Where was he when the plane hit? What was he doing? What's he doing now? Is he evacuating? Is he even okay? He could be hurt, he could be…

James forced himself to stop those thoughts from running so swiftly through his mind. He grabbed for his cell phone, hit the "2" on his dial pad, and hit "send".

After two rings, a voice answered, "Hello?"

"Carlos? Are you seeing what I'm seeing?" James asked, though he wasn't sure why—Carlos lived in New York, his apartment had the best view of the World Trade Center in the whole city.

"Ye- what, the Twin Towers?" Carlos asked, and James raised an eyebrow. "It's on the news already?"

"Of course it's on the news," James told him, slightly surprised that Carlos was unaware of the fact. "How often does a plane fly into the World Trade Center?"

There was a short pause. "A- a plane?" Carlos sounded nothing short of shocked.

"Yeah, dude," James said, "Where have you been?"

There was another silence; however, this one was longer than the first. James had a feeling that Carlos was turning on the news in order to hear for himself. After a few minutes, Carlos spoke. "Man, when did this happen?"

"They're saying it was, like, fifteen minutes ago," James told explained, "But I've only been watching for about five."

"How did this happen, though?" Carlos asked, sounding like he was in complete disbelief. "I mean, why the hell would a plane be flying that low in the first place? How could it lose control that badly?"

These were questions that James wanted answered, as well. "I don't know-"

James heard a sudden gasp. "Oh my God, James, Kendall's in there!" Carlos blurted. James' heart twinged with fear once more. "Oh my God, oh my God, I can't believe this, oh my God…"

"God, I know, that's why I called you…" James said, running a hand through his hair. As he spoke, he could feel his voice shaking. "And Logan…"

"Oh my God, Logan, I didn't even think of Logan!" The panic in Carlos' voice seemed to double with these words.

"He's probably on duty," James stated. "I can even hear the sirens through the TV…"

There was silence for a few moments as Carlos, James imagined, tried to come to grips with the situation that was developing. He could just picture Carlos pacing back and forth, pinching the bridge of his nose with his fingers as he often did when he was worried or stressed. James, himself, also had a nervous habit: he tended to run his hand through his hair a lot, as well as hold his head. As soon as this thought ran through his mind, he realized that he was, indeed, currently digging his fingers into the roots of his hair. With a sigh, James smoothed out his hair and put his hand in his lap, trying to calm down.

That idea only lasted about a second, though, because suddenly Carlos was shouting. "Oh my- oh my God! Oh, God!"

James jumped. "What?" he asked urgently, diving on the floor for a closer look at the TV.

"Don't you see? The second tower, the plane—" But James barely heard what Carlos said, because a plane suddenly appeared on his screen, rocketed toward the World Trade Center, and crashed into the second tower.

"Oh my God!" James cried, his eyes bugging out of his head, "Oh my God, are you kidding me? Oh my God…"

"James, this isn't an accident," Carlos said, sounding more shaken than James had ever heard him before, "This isn't an accident, we're being attacked, I can't believe this…"

James, still lying on his stomach in front of the TV, propped himself up on his elbows and ran a hand through his hair. They were under attack… there was no way of knowing for sure, of course, but all the signs pointed that way. Two planes flying straight into the two tallest buildings of the World Trade Center within twenty minutes of each other? There was no way that could be a coincidence. James was very unsettled by the thought that someone out there was deliberately trying to harm the United States, and even though he was about as far away from New York as he could possibly be, he did not feel safe at all.

"God, who would do this?" James wondered aloud.

"I don't know," Carlos said, "But, James… Kendall and Logan… I'm freaking out…"

"I know," James said quietly, closing his eyes briefly, "So am I… we have to call them. Call them and see if we can get hold of them so we can at least have some idea…"

"Yeah," Carlos said quickly, "Yeah, and call each other as soon as we're done."

"Okay," James agreed, hanging up the phone. He rolled onto his back and sat up. He drew in a deep breath, trying to decide who to call first: Kendall or Logan? It was, surprisingly, a quick decision. Kendall was in more immediate danger, James rationed, and so he stood up and punched the "3" on his dial pad that served as Kendall's speed dial.

He waited with bated breath as the phone rang once… twice… three times… and then four times. James' stomach lurched as he heard Kendall's pre-recorded voice: "Hey, it's Kendall, I'm not available, but leave your name and number and I'll get back to you. Peace."James hung up quickly and tried again, feeling slightly more anxious. His nerves were not calmed when Kendall failed to answer the second time, or the third time, or the fourth time. Each time James heard, "Hey, it's Kendall…" he became more panicky and scared. Finally, the eighth time he got Kendall's voicemail, he waited for it to play out and left a message. "Hey, Kendall, it's me," he said quickly. "I've called you, like, ten times, and I'm not gonna lie, I'm getting a little freaked out by this whole you-not-answering thing. Umm…" James sighed and ran his hand through his hair yet again. "I'm really worried about you, and I really hope you're okay… because I don't know what I'd do if you weren't. Just—call me if you can, okay? And, Kendall, please, please, be careful… I know you can get through this." James paused in an attempt to control his breathing before concluding, "I love you. Bye."

James was oh-for-one in attempts to successfully reach his friends, and the last thing he wanted was to be oh-for-two when he talked to Carlos again. This was why his fingers shook and his heartbeat quickened as he pressed the "4" on his phone to speed dial Logan. The slight feeling of panic that had generated when he had initially failed to reach Kendall continued to grow as he tried to reach Logan. He had honestly believed that he had a better chance of reaching Logan than reaching Kendall, and that was why his level of worry rose drastically when he got Logan's voicemail. James hung up his phone and dialed again, only to get the same results.

James lost track of how many times he called Logan, but by the time he had left a voicemail telling his friend that he was worried and to call him back as soon as he could, James was downright frantic. He was just about to try calling Kendall again when his phone rang. He didn't even bother to check who was calling him before answering hurriedly, "I tried Kendall, like, ten times, and he never picked up! And Logan's not answering, either!"

"I got Logan!" Carlos said quickly.

James felt an immense feeling of relief. "What? You did? Oh, thank God." He let out a breath that he hadn't realized he'd been holding. "Is he alright? What'd he say?"

"He said that his station got there twenty minutes ago," Carlos explained, "And he said that he's worried about Kendall, he tried calling him, too, but he didn't get an answer." James' heart dropped again; all three of them had tried and failed to get a hold of Kendall. "And Logan's fine… at least, he was."

James tensed, not liking where this was going. "What do you mean, he was?"

"He… he just got sent up into one of the towers."

James felt as if his heart had been ripped out of his chest.

"What?"

"I was on the phone with him when his chief gave him the orders… James, now they're both in there. I mean, what if… what if something happens? What if—"

"No," James cut Carlos off, "No, I can't think about that, please, let's not talk about 'what if's, okay?" He was extremely worried about Kendall and Logan as it was; he didn't want to think about what might be happening to them.

"Okay," Carlos said, and after that they were quiet for a while. James couldn't tear his eyes from the TV screen. He sat, cross-legged, on the floor in front of the TV because the bed was too far away. He felt as though he might hear any developing news faster if he was closer to the TV. He knew that this wasn't logical, but considering the circumstances, he thought he was allowed to have a few irrational thoughts. So he sat, unmoving, five feet away from the TV. He drew circles in the carpet with one hand and pressed his phone to his ear with the other, never once taking his eyes off of the screen in front of him. After a while, his gaze became unfocused and he fell into a trance-like state.

He only snapped out of it when the reporters' tones changed and the cameras panned in on the towers. James blinked rapidly and sat up straighter, listening more carefully to the news report.

"… I think that's what it is."

"Oh, my gosh…"

The reporters sounded nothing short of shocked, and oddly captivated at the same time. James stared at the TV intently, trying to see what the newscasters were seeing. For a minute all he saw was the flames licking the towers, the thick, black smoke rising into the air, and the debris falling from the burning buildings.

But then he saw it. Black dots that stood out from the gray wreckage, falling through the air next to the buildings.

"Oh—oh my gosh—"

"What?"

Carlos probably couldn't see them from his window. "Are you seeing this?"

"No, what's going on?"

"Go… go watch through your TV."

There was a pause, and then Carlos voiced again, "What?"

James sighed, resigning himself to just tell him. "There—" He closed his eyes. It was almost too horrible to put into words. "People are jumping, Carlos."

Another pause. A long pause. He could tell by the silence that Carlos had seen and was now thinking exactly what James was thinking: Would Kendall or Logan—?

James shook his head and ran his hands through his hair. No, James, don't think about things like that. But he couldn't help it. His friends were up there, and nothing he could do could possibly make him forget that. Nothing could stop him from thinking and fearing the worst.

After a few more minutes, James spoke. "Carlos? You there?"

"Yeah," his friend answered, voice shaking, "Yeah, I—I just can't believe this—"

"Me either… it's horrible…"

And then his TV screen went blank for a moment. James heard Carlos voice his surprise and knew that they were watching the same channel. A breaking news bulletin appeared on his screen, and a newscaster reported a plane crash at the Pentagon that was suspected to be directly linked to the attacks on the World Trade Center. James' jaw dropped. It just kept coming. This was a disaster beyond anything James ever could have imagined. He could barely comprehend the magnitude of the attacks or how and why anyone would ever do this.

After a few more minutes, he found his voice. "I can't believe this… what next? When do they call it quits?"

"When they've killed as many of us as possible," Carlos said. "They're trying to make us fall apart at the seams by hitting us where it hurts the most…"

James had nothing to say to that. He just sat in silence, his eyes glued to the TV, because that was all that he found himself capable of doing. He didn't know how long they sat in silence for. He wasn't aware of anything other than what was happening on the screen, sitting and watching in a wordless stupor. It was as if the world had stopped; nothing moved, the only sounds that could be heard came from the TV, nothing happened.

Until the unbearable happened.

Enormous, gray, clouds formed, shooting downward and upward and sideways. A low, barely audible rumbling might have been heard if not for James' yelling as he watched in horror as the South Tower fell to the ground.

There's chapter two. At long last. It's not a great as I'd have liked it to be, but I really wanted to get it done. I hope you guys don't hate me for leaving you hanging this long, and I promise I won't do it again. I'm hoping to get chapter 3 up by the end of this week. Reviews would be awesome