"I thought we were meeting everybody at City Walk," Dak Zevon said as he lowered himself onto the park bench at Griffith Park. He lifted his hips and grasped the belt loops of his jeans to pull his pants up to his waist. He turned to face Kendall's side who was staring out across the grass.

"Boardwalk Fries are calling my name," Carlos Garcia added with a moan as he clasped his hands over his stomach. He loudly licked his lips. "Mmm, I can already taste the Old Bay seasoning."

"You know that stuff is bad for you," Kendall said, his nose wrinkling as he made a face.

"I'm sorry we all can't be as organically boring as you and Riles," Carlos replied with an exaggerated roll of his eyes. Dak let out a single bark of laughter as Kendall braced his arm and rammed his shoulder into Carlos's.

"It's better for you, you know," Kendall said as he straightened in his seat. "Keeps me healthy and fit."

"Ah, so hockey has been helping you out. Not much of a push over anymore." Carlos smiled as he rubbed at his shoulder. "Surprised if anyone could knock you over, Butch, you're built like a brick wall."

Dak chuckled as he watched the pair of old friends rib each other. He could say he was not only professional friends with the ex-members of Big Time Rush, but it was a bit harder to say he was personal friends with them. He had gotten closer to not only Kendall and Carlos, but James Diamond, and Logan Mitchell as well over the years as he not only helped them with their band and career from time to time but as he dated Rhuben as well.

Still, even now, most times he felt like he was on the outside looking in on their great friendship. He was older than everybody in their large group of friends and had gone through so much success early on in his life he was surprised his arrogant teenage attitude didn't drive them away for good. Well, not all too surprised. He could tell even after first meeting James, Carlos, Logan, and Kendall that they wouldn't let fame get to their head. In James's case, not too much, anyway.

"So, what's up?" Dak asked, squinting his eyes just slightly as the California breeze blowing through the trees allowed streaks of yellow light to shine on them.

"We're still meeting everyone else," Kendall explained, picking at the loose thread at the hem of his t-shirt before reaching up to adjust the hat perched on his head. "You two are the only ones who are married so I thought I'd ask you this question. Ask for your opinion on this, I guess."

"Is everything ok, dude?" Carlos asked. Dak glanced over Kendall's head over at Carlos who locked eyes with him before giving a shrug of his shoulders.

"Yeah, it's just…" Kendall trailed off. "I just wanted your views on something and while mom and I can talk about a lot, I kind of don't want to ask her about this." He paused briefly, a thoughtful look crossing his face before he shook his head. "Julius probably wouldn't be too comfortable with it either, now that I think about it."

"It's normal to have second thoughts about getting married you know," Dak said to Kendall.

"That's not it," Kendall replied. He tilted his head back, the base of his skull bumping against the back of the bench. "Uh…Carlos, you and Steph have been married for a little over two years, and Dak, you and Rhubes are coming upon a year."

"Yeahhh." Dak slowly nodded his head, giving Carlos a confused look. "You're kind of creeping me out, Kendall."

"Yeah, you haven't acted this weird since you were trying to decide whether or not you wanted Jo to go to New Zealand," Carlos added. His facial features then twisted together as he winced. "Ooh. Probably shouldn't have brought up your ex when talking about your fiancée."

"How long did you guys wait after you were married to, you know, consummate your marriage?" Kendall asked, ignoring Carlos.

Carlos let out a loud laugh. "Dude, I'm the worst person to be asking that in regards to your fiancée," he said, poking his friend in the shoulders. He then glanced upwards for a moment as he thought. "About…two hours."

"Two hours!?" Kendall and Dak practically shouted in unison, leaning over in their seats to look at their friend. Carlos hiked an eyebrow.

"You two were at my wedding, right?" he asked with a snort. Dak and Kendall nodded their heads. "And you were at the reception?" Again, they nodded. Carlos slowly started to grin. "Did you see Steph and me during our whole reception?" Dak opened and closed his mouth before settling into silence.

Carlos and Stephanie King were the first of their group to get engaged, let alone to get married. He had proposed to her practically the minute he turned 19 years old. They had been together basically since they had met and stayed together without too many big problems. They were without a doubt Palm Woods' high school sweethearts. Their wedding reception wasn't a formal sit down, as it didn't match their personalities, but more of a party; one of Carlos's "Hollywood Party King of Hollywood" parties.

"Now that you mention it," Kendall said, stroking his chin, his fingers making a scraping sound as they slid over the stubble, "I remember you making a bee line for the bacon wrapped chicken, but then after that…"

"Exactly," Carlos finished as a look of amusement appeared on his face. Then a serious look crossed his face. "Like I said, though, Steph isn't like Riles." He then looked over at Dak. "Or Rhubes for that matter. She hasn't gone through what they have." He then gave Kendall a teasing smile. "But, Riles as always been a firecracker, so maybe in this case, you'll want to do more than cuddle."

"Alright, alright," Kendall said, annoyance tingeing his tone just slightly. It was a bit of a joke in their group of friends that Kendall was more the type to cuddle when Riley was open to making-out. Dak quickly turned a short laugh into a cough.

He couldn't blame the guy for being a romantic. It was just who Kendall was. Dak knew it was also partially due to him wanting to keep Riley as comfortable in their relationship as he could. On the other hand, Carlos was right; Riley was a firecracker. She would be sure to let Kendall know, in the loudest and unfortunately in some cases meanest of terms, if what he was doing made her feel like he was being too protective and not allowing her to decide for herself what she would be comfortable with.

Rhuben on the other hand just stayed silent. Dak could tell if something was bothering her, but had quickly learned it was best to ask what was wrong only a couple of times before backing off and waiting for her to come to him to explain. That was how he had found her after a day of financial meetings to start up his record company, waiting for him to come to their apartment to talk a week after their wedding.

She looked so small, sitting in the center of their bed. Neither of them said anything apart from a quick greeting. Dak removed his glasses from his face to wipe the lenses clean with the hem of his shirt. He needed to keep himself busy, try to ignore the feeling of worry that climbed up his spine, each edge of his vertebrae a stepping stone.

Finally, the tension in the room burst, giving room for her to start explaining. He stood quietly, listening to every word. She kept her head, her gaze, downwards, rocking back and forth just slightly. He was still silent when she was done.

"Well?" Rhuben sat with her knees drawn up to her chest, arms wrapped around her legs. Her chin rest on the tops of her knees as she looked up at him through her dark hair. "Say something."

"I'm not mad if that's what you're worried about, lovely," Dak replied, resting the curve of his back against the edge of the dresser. He crossed one leg over the other before crossing his arms over his chest. He let out a sigh through his nose as he silently regarded her. "I'm disappointed." Rhuben winced, briefly closing an eye before shifting her gaze to the bedspread. Her toes let out a soft crack as she curled them, pressing the tips into the mattress. "Not with you, with me."

"What do you mean?" Rhuben asked.

"Look," Dak said as he climbed up onto the bed. He folded his legs beneath him before resting his arms on her knees, leaning forward to look her in the eye. "I've always said that this wasn't about sex and I mean it. I mean, yeah, it goes with marriage and everything but…" He trailed off, shrugging his shoulders. "I'm disappointed that I might've done something to make you not trust me with this. Where did I go wrong?"

"You didn't, Diz," Rhuben replied with a shake of her head. Dak grasped her hand and brought her knuckles to his lips in a quick kiss before running the pad of his thumb over her ring. It slid from side to side just slightly, never having been taken to the jeweler to get it sized perfectly since from Australia. "It's me."

Dak pressed his lips together for a moment. "You're…you're not regretting…getting married a-are you?" he asked quietly.

"No," Rhuben replied, lifting her hands to place them on his forearms. "No, of course not." Bumps instantly raised on his skin at her touch as she dragged her fingers up and down his arms. She lifted her head just slightly and Dak leaned forward and kissed her, cupping her cheeks with his hands.

He tried to pass his reassurance on to her, through his lips, through his touch. He wanted to show that he'd be there for her and he always would be, and that he was sorry for whatever it was that he might've done. He pressed his forehead against hers as soon as he pulled away, letting out a sigh through his nose.

"I love you, Dak," Rhuben said. "You didn't do anything wrong. Really."

"I must've done something." Dak shook his head back and forth. "I want to help. If that means I have to sleep on the couch or in the guest room for a while, I will. Without hesitation. I mean, it'll be pretty lonely, but…"

"We've shared a bed before and have…had sex before," Rhuben explained, clearing her throat, bowing her head just slightly in embarrassment. Dak felt his lips curl up into a smile just slightly. He always thought she looked cute when she was embarrassed, trying to hide her face, hide the flush the tinged her cheeks pink that made her eyes look a bit purple and soft. Softer and more alight then he'd ever seen. "It's different now."

"Like being married isn't different?" Dak asked with a teasing smile, his eyebrows shooting up. Rhuben shoved his shoulders, shifting his weight backwards just slightly. Dak laughed, reaching up to grasp her hands.

"You know what I mean," she said with a little laugh. She twisted her mouth to the side just slightly. She flicked her head to the side just slightly, tossing her side braid off her shoulder. "I just need a little time, that's all."

"I know," Dak replied with a nod of his head. "We'll just take things slow. Like we always have."

"And I do trust you by the way," Rhuben said, the familiar glint of amusement appearing in her eyes. "I just don't really trust myself to not act on my urge to kill you when you snore."

"It's ''Til Death Do Us Part', lovely," Dak pointed out to her, "not murder."

"Details," Rhuben replied, removing her hand from under Dak's grip to wave her hand in the air. Her lips parted to relax into a grin when she heard his name for her. "You're awesome, you know that?"

"I love you, too," Dak replied. "You want me to go sleep in the guest room? Or the couch is closer; you know, just in case you have a nightmare or something."

"Please," Rhuben said.

"Sure," Dak replied before back rolling off of the bed, landing on his feet. "It's probably for the best, anyway." Rhuben gave him a confused look. "I've seen what you look like waking up and it's not always pretty." He pulled his facial features into an ugly face before lifting his hands up to the side of his head, wiggling his fingers. "Your hair is all over the place like a witch and your breath is pretty kicking, too. And this way, I don't have to worry about you putting your freezing cold feet on my back."

"Shut. Up," Rhuben said, her look of shock quickly turning into amusement. She reached behind her for a pillow. She grasped it in her hands before throwing it at him. Dak laughed as he smacked the pillow downwards with his arms, holding it against his thighs.

"Hey, watch the glasses," he said in a mock warning tone, lifting his hand to pushing his glasses up his nose.

Rhuben stuck her tongue out at him. "Four eyes."

Dak blinked, looking over at Kendall when he felt a tap on his knee. Kendall and Carlos were staring at him and Dak realized that they were waiting on him to answer their unheard question. "Sorry, what?" he asked.

"How long did—"

"Oh, right," Dak said, interrupting Kendall. "Two weeks." He then put his hand up into the air when Carlos and Kendall exchanged glances. "We didn't go on a honeymoon because we're saving for the record company, and with the week we all spent in Australia there was no way we were going to get any privacy." He shrugged. "Then after we got back she just needed time."

"What's going on, Kendall?" Carlos asked. "You've never really second guessed yourself about this kind of stuff before."

"I just want to make sure everything's perfect," Kendall replied, running his hands over his face. "For her. I kind of feel like Riles has been pulling away, kind of?" He said it as more of a question than a statement.

"This is a big event in both of your lives, nerves and worries are bound to come up," Carlos said to his friend. "If she needs some space to figure things out, just give her space."

"The last time I did that she nearly had a mental breakdown because of her being bipolar," Kendall replied.

"But, that worked out for the two of you, remember?" Dak asked. "You were there for her when she needed you."

"Yeah, I guess," Kendall replied with a nod of his head.

"If you hadn't been there, she might've really hurt herself, Kendall," Carlos reminded him. He lifted his hand and ran his fingers through his short cut hair.

"Look, you both know as well as I do that the Jacksons will tell you something when they think you should know and I'm sure there will be things she'll probably never tell you," Dak said to the two of them. "But really how is that any different than anyone else?"

"Yeah. I mean, Kendall, I never told you that time I used your tooth brush to apply rash cream to Sparky before he ran away," Carlos said. His eyes then widened as a hand went flying up to cover his mouth. "Oops." Dak tried hard, but couldn't hold back his groan of disgust. Kendall's eyes widened into a look of horror before he pulled his hat off of his head and started to smack his friend with it. "Ow! Ow, I'm sorry."

"I kept telling mom that toothpaste tasted like lotion or sunscreen, but she wouldn't believe me," Kendall said as he jammed his hat down onto his head, getting to his feet. The brim scratched against the back of his neck. "We should get going."

"Come on, it wasn't that bad," Carlos protested, a grin popping back up on his face.

"You've tasted sunscreen?" Dak asked, his upper lip curling slightly as he got to his feet, adjusting the hem of his shirt.

Carlos merely shrugged. "Never seen me pass up on a dare, have you?" he asked with a smirk.

Oy. Dak rolled his eyes, shaking his head slightly from side to side. "Can I just make a suggestion, Kendall?" Dak asked him. Kendall nodded his head. "I haven't been married long and Rhuben and Riley aren't the same person so I don't know how well this will help, and you probably already know, but—"

"Honestly, Dak, I want to change the subject," Kendall said to him, putting a hand in the air. "No offense."

I guess I should just be happy you wanted to talk to me in the first place. Dak's lips twitched as he gave a nod of his head. "No problem," he reassured Kendall, putting a small smile to his face.

"But, I do have a question," Kendall said. He stopped walking and turned to face Dak, spinning the brim of his hat around to block the sun from his face. "Did you invite Robert to your wedding? 'Cause, I didn't see him there, and I'm wondering if I should invite my dad."

Dak bowed his head for a moment as his wife's ex-foster father was brought up. He and his past abuse wasn't too much of a tough subject for the Jacksons to talk about, but they all made sure to let them bring him up when in conversation with them. "Actually, we did," Dak replied. Carlos made a noise of surprise in the back of his throat. "He just didn't show up. He didn't give a reason, either."

"Why do you think he didn't go?" Carlos asked.

"I don't think he trusted himself," Dak replied, squinting over at Carlos. "That long of a flight with a plane full of people who have had his picture plastered on their TV screens at some point and with no way out. Wouldn't really blame him for trying to find a way through it to be honest with you. Plus, he would be travelling by himself for the first time and I'm sure the people back in Australia aren't too fond of him so…" He shifted his gaze back to Kendall. "It's up to you if you want to invite your dad."

"You two seem to be ok now," Carlos added, shifting his weight from foot to foot. "You respect each other and I'm sure he'd understand wither way. If you think the pros outweigh the cons, go right ahead. Either way, you know we've got your back." He held his fist out to Kendall and he bumped it with his own.

Kendall slowly nodded his head up and down, a far off look coming to his face. "Got it," he replied. "Thanks."

"Happy to help whenever I can," Dak replied with a shrug. "Just be there for her just like she has been for you. Remember that Riles went with you to Minnesota for a reason."

Kendall chuckled. "She kept calling it Siberia," he said, a fond smile coming to his face. He clapped Dak on the shoulder. "Thanks for listening."

"Sure," Dak replied with a nod of his head.

"How is your record company going, anyway?" Carlos asked. "You never said the other day if the meeting went well or…you know. Whatever."

Dak let out a sigh, his shoulders slumping slightly. "Not much luck," he replied, scratching the back of his head. "I'm really running a huge risk anyway, I mean, why would people want to go the route of an independent label when you have big names like Universal, or Capital, or Atlantic to go for?"

"Hmmm, you've got a point," Carlos pointed out and Kendall elbowed him in the side. "I mean…don't give up!" He proceeded to give an over the top smile and gave a double thumbs up. Kendall rolled his eyes.

"It's not me I'm worried about to be honest," Dak replied, sliding his hands into his jeans pockets. "Rhubes has been kind of hard on herself for not getting any demos sold. She's been putting a lot of pressure on herself for it. 5 Seconds of Summer is a band growing in popularity, from Sydney. We're trying to get a song done for them, see if they want it."

"They toured with One Direction, didn't they?" Carlos asked. When all eyes went to him, he shrugged. "Steph's a fan."

"Yeah, something like that," Dak agreed. "That's the biggest name so far. Don't know how well that will go right now. She just doesn't want to let me down."

"No offense, but this talk is making me depressed, and I need something to eat," Carlos said to his friends. "Let's get going."

"Seriously, sometimes I wonder how I put up with you for so long." Kendall shoved Carlos's shoulder with his hand. Carlos shoved him back all the while saying through his laughter, "Whatever you say, Logan." Dak shuffled behind the two of them, letting out a sigh through his nose.

Rhuben had always been worried about failing and he was sure she was afraid to fail him with this next business venture despite his reassurances. Riley was the same way; especially after gaining more control over her life and choices. Dak knew she hoped to have the love and marriage that her parents had and knew she was worried she'd be the reason for it not working out. But, on the other hand, he also knew that Kendall had never forgotten what his own dad did to his family. Maybe they were both worried for each other.

With that much pressure, he knew it would only be a matter of time before any one of them snapped. He hadn't seen the warning signs with Rhuben before, but hoped as a husband that he'd be there to fulfill her needs no matter how much she tried to push him away. And he could only hope the same for Kendall.

A/N: Sorry for the wait for this chapter. I had changed the plot to this story just a bit and was making sure everything I had originally planned didn't get messed up. Plus, I had a lack of motivation for a little while.