DISCLAIMER: I do not own Big Time Rush or any of its characters
"This way…this way, boys."
"Excuse us."
"There they are!"
"I see them!"
"Right through here, boys."
"Hi Kendall! Hi James!"
James flashed a smile and a peace sign at the bit of the crowd that could see the guys as they were led to their outdoor dressing room/tent thing behind the stage at the music festival. They'd had a successful sound check that morning and were going on for their performance in less than an hour. Already, fans were staking out spots to see the boys perform.
Carlos was the last in to the room/tent, and a security guard closed the curtained doors and stood guard outside to prevent exuberant fans from getting in. "Woo!" Carlos exhaled, throwing himself onto the cushy, worn-out couch that was set up in the tent. "It is hot!" He fanned himself with the paper he had in his hand, which happened to be a copy of the boys' set list.
"Yep," Kendall agreed, immediately heading to the cooler in the corner. Inside it was full of ice and water bottles—perfect, because the temperature was somewhere around 95 degrees. He grabbed a few and started handing them around, to the guys and to their band members who were sharing the dressing room with them.
The security guard poked his head in. "Logan, a guy out here asking for you? Says he's your dad."
Logan got up from the folding chair he had just settled down in. Outside, waving at him, was Chris. "Hey! Chris!" Logan nodded at the guard and gestured that he let Chris in, which he did. Chris stepped in, putting his hands in the pockets of his shorts and glancing around.
"I just wanted to say hey before you guys went on," Chris told him. "Hey, Kendall, Carlos, James," he greeted the other three as well. They all mumbled replies, even James.
"Hey, I don't think you've met our band before, Chris," Logan realized. "This is Dustin, our guitar player…" Logan went around introducing them all to Chris and soon everyone was familiar. For a while, there was easy chatting going on. Kendall and Carlos seemed so much easier around Chris now, and even James added in a few words here and there—he'd even cracked a smile when Chris mentioned that there were two girls outside with posters asking James to marry them.
Soon, though, Logan looked at his watch and realized how close it was to go-time. "Hey, Chris, the show'll be starting soon," he told his father. "It's open seating—I can get Brett or another security guy to get you a place in front."
Chris shook his head. "Oh no," he said, waving that offer off. "Leave the front for your fans. Not that I'm not a huge fan of you kids, but I get to see you other times—let these girls have their moment standing that near you. Have a great show, all of ya." Logan grinned and nodded as his dad clapped him on the shoulder and left.
Kendall cleared his throat and shrugged, smiling despite himself. "Well…Logan…I kind of like him."
"Really?" Logan said, another smile creeping to his face. "That's great! I'm glad."
"I think he's pretty cool too," Carlos admitted. "I mean…he's a nice guy."
Dustin and the other guys of the band murmured agreements as well. Logan nodded and grinned and then turned slowly to face James. The tall brunette seemed to be deep in thought, biting his lip and staring at his converse. Logan waited eagerly for James to say that he liked Chris too.
"I don't know," was what James came out with. "I just…I don't know."
Logan felt his face fall. "That's…it's cool, James," he said flatly. "Thanks for being honest." Logan stood up from his spot on the couch abruptly. "I'm gonna hit the bathroom before the show." He quickly exited the tent and one of the security guys escorted him to the VIP restroom that was only a little ways away. As he walked outside, the heat of the sun reminded him he really should get some water before the show started.
Inside the tent, James watched as Logan left. He felt guilty—he wanted to like Logan's dad, because he knew it would make Logan happy. But he just couldn't somehow. He had issues trusting people. Ever since James had been a little kid and his parents had gotten divorced because of his own father's infidelity, he had had trouble believing people. The worst thing a person could do, James thought, was lie to someone. People have no way to tell if you're lying.
~~~~~~BTR~~~~~~BTR~~~~~~BTR~~~~~~BTR~~~~~~BTR~~~~~~BTR~~~~~~BTR~~~~~~BTR~~~~~~BTR~~~~~~
Logan ducked back inside the tent, sweating from just the walk to the bathroom. "It is hot out there," he said, fanning himself with his hand. "Hey Kendall, pass me-." Logan was cut off as Kelly rushed in with a stage hand.
"Guys, onstage!" she exclaimed. "You go on in one minute! The pre-show is almost over!"
"Oh, crap," Logan murmured, forgetting about getting any water and grabbing his mic and in-ear from the stage hand, worrying too much about plugging things in to be thirsty as he took the steps to the stage two at a time, the other guys close behind.
They got there just in time to hear their names being announced. All four of them were bouncing up and down, stretching, waving out their hands, getting loose and ready for the show. They were starting with "Nothing Even Matters."
The band had gone to the stage ahead of them, and now the music started. The guys all exchanged grins and headed out onstage to a screaming crowd. Logan grinned as he took in all the homemade signs flying over the audience and the girls pressed up against the stage barriers, hands out, hoping to touch one of the boys.
Hey!
Cuz the world stops when I put my arms around ya, around ya (Oh whoa)
And nothin' even matters (Hey!)
And nothin' even matters (Hey!)
This was Logan's big song. He sang lead in it. The fan were absolutely going crazy and loving it. The choreography was going perfectly. The band was awesome. The guys were singing great. It wasn't until the end of the song that Logan started feeling odd.
It occurred to him that he should have grabbed some water before they had gone onstage—he had hardly had anything to drink all day, he'd kept getting distracted by everything going on. His throat was parched. He knew he was dehydrated—probably too dehydrated to be performing like he was but, hey, they were only singing three songs, and one was already over. He could make it through.
Plus, this next song they were sitting down anyway. They each brought out a barstool and then they performed "No Idea." But Logan still felt queasy and shaky after that one, even more perhaps. Even though he wasn't dancing around the stage, he was now sitting directly in the sun and it was merciless in beating down on him. He felt himself sweating buckets, but promised himself he could push through the last song.
As he placed his bar stool by the back of the stage, he grabbed a water bottle from where it sat on the ground and took the quickest sip possible. It was warm, but it was so refreshing and it moistened his dry mouth and throat. There, that should let him make it through the last song. He heard the opening notes of "Superstar" playing and he rushed to his spot.
No…no, that water hadn't helped much. Logan gradually noticed that things were getting fuzzier. He squinted as he maneuvered the tough choreography and sang the demanding song. He wasn't sure he could keep holding on. But he kept stumbling through the number. Kendall noticed—Logan bumped into him once and Kendall grabbed his arm, and the split second their eyes had met Logan had seen them to be full of concern. Logan just shook his head and they continued on with the song. He could make it through and then throw up backstage or something.
At the end of the bridge, Logan came to what he'd been dreading—his and James's backflips. He prepped as well as he could, but knew as soon as he pushed off the ground he wasn't going to be all right. He landed okay, his feet landing squarely on the stage, but his legs refused to support him. He stumbled to his hands and knees. The first few rows gasped and then the rest of the crowd as well as Logan fell the rest of the way and didn't get back up.
Everything was slowly going black. The music stopped and he heard Kendall shouting to the stage hands as Carlos and James kneeled by his side. And then, everything was black and he fell into unawareness.
