A/N. Since Logan is safe and sound (and okay maybe a little confused) in 'Head On Collision', I decided to pick on him a little more in this story. YAY! I don't own anything.

Logan had known James and Kendall and Carlos for practically his whole life. They had been five when they first met on a frozen pond in Minnesota and had been best friends ever since. They had seen each other through so much. As young as they were, they had been there for Logan when he lost his mother at six years of age. They were there for James when his favorite uncle died and the adults wouldn't tell them anything because "seven was too young to understand some things". They were there for Carlos when the racial torments began in second grade. They were there for Kendall when his parents separated and then divorced when he was eleven. And they were there for Logan all over again when his father died when they were all fourteen. But sometimes, Logan wondered why they even put up with him.

He wasn't like any of them at all. Kendall was strong and courageous and brimming with confidence. He could take on the whole world without anyone else lifting a finger. Granted, he wasn't a super hero and so he would lose. But he would go down fighting. Logan wasn't like that. He was a wimp who let other people walk all over him. He was afraid of everything and with the exception of school work, Logan had virtually no self-confidence.

James was popular. Everyone loved James, and why not? He could sing and dance but it was more than that. James had the passion that it took to be a star and one day he would be a household name. But for now, plenty of people both in Minnesota and in LA knew perfectly well who James Diamond was. Logan was pretty much invisible to everyone but his friends. Sure, he could sing but he was an awful dancer and stage fright was a regular thing for him.

Carlos was the kind of person that made everyone happy just to be around. He made friends with everyone and could always cheer someone up when they were having a bad day. Logan was socially awkward and uncomfortable around people he didn't know that well. He never knew what to say or do and it left him with a feeling of helpless that was soon followed by uselessness.

There was a simpler way to describe his friends though: Rock, paper, scissors. Kendall was without a doubt, the rock of the group. Strong, steady, dependable, he would never let anyone down. Carlos was flighty, wild, and flexible and well, useful, just like paper. James was scissors and this was where Logan hit a minor snag in his own little metaphor. Because it didn't fit James as well as paper fit Carlos and rock fit Kendall. James was sharp and determined and once he set his mind on something, very little was going to stand in his way. The most perfect part of the metaphor was that there wasn't a place for Logan at all and this reinforced his belief that he really didn't belong with his friends after all.

It wasn't always like this. When they were younger Logan had never questioned anything and simply accepted life as it was for him. His mother was dead and that was unfair but he had the three best friends in all the world and they made everything better for him. But the older he got the more Logan felt that something was wrong with him. Why else would his father stop caring about him? Maybe everyone else just felt bad for him and that was why they were his friends. Maybe-

Logan stopped and scolded himself for doubting his friends. Why couldn't he just believe that they really and truly cared about him? Sometimes he did and sometimes he didn't. Right now, he was confused. He had caused so much trouble with his inability to sleep and now getting mugged and everything in between that no one knew about. Even though he insisted that he had no serious injuries, Kendall was frantic with worry and blaming himself, James was stunned and scared into silence, and Carlos had yet to completely stop crying. They weren't annoyed or mad at him at all. They just wanted him to be okay. But Logan was sure all of that would change if they ever found out-

"Logan Mitchell?"

His head snapped up along with his friends at the sound of a doctor's voice. He stood up slowly, one arm wrapped around his throbbing ribs, and tried to smile at the man standing before them. "Hi," He mumbled softly. "Sorry to bother you with something little like this."

The doctor's eyebrows shot up at his words. "It doesn't look that little to me. Have you seen yourself?"

Logan winced and shook his head. "No," He admitted. "But I know that nothing is seriously wrong with me. I'm just a little sore that's all. No big deal."

"Logan," Kendall said softly. "Why do you keep saying that? Some jerks just mugged you. It's a huge deal. You. . ." He paused and swallowed hard. "You could have been hurt so much worse."

"But I wasn't," Logan sighed.

"All right, how about we check you out now?" The doctor intervened smoothly. "It shouldn't take too long and then you'll probably want to head over to the police station to file a report."

"Can we come?" Kendall asked hopefully.

The doctor hesitated. "It won't take long at all if his injuries really aren't serious." He said slowly. "And it really is unnecessary for the examination room to be so crowded." He eyed the three boys and Kelly and Gustavo, all of whom were waiting anxiously.

Gustavo surprised them all by speaking up. "Well then, what about just Kendall then?" He looked embarrassed to be sticking up for one of his "dogs" but he went on. "He's really his brother. I mean, adoptive."

For a very brief time, Kendall looked like he could have actually thrown his arms around their music producer and hug him. But then he turned back to the doctor, waiting for his answer. He let out a huge sigh of relief when the man nodded. "Okay then," He said with a nod. "We'll be back soon then hopefully. He felt another rush of relief mixed in with pride when James returned his nod and then wrapped an arm around Carlos to comfort him.

"Kendall, I'll be fine. You don't need to come. I'm sixteen, remember?" Logan didn't really relish the idea of being alone but the way Kendall babied him sometimes, especially lately, was borderline humiliating.

"So, I'm going to call Mom and tell her that you got mugged and I waited out. . . in the waiting room when I could have been there with you?" Kendall rolled his eyes. "She'd get on the first flight out her and murder me in my sleep."

They followed the doctor into an exam room where the loud bustle of the ER faded out as soon as the doctor closed the door behind him. "Okay, Logan." He said with a smile. "Why don't you hop up here on the table for me?"

Logan sighed and went to obey but was caught off guard at how much it hurt when he tried the first time. A gasp of pain escaped from between his lips and he doubled over, wrapping both arms around his torso which no felt like it was on fire. "I'm okay," He told Kendall before he had an anxiety attack. "Just. . . can you help me?" With both Kendall and the doctor helping him, he managed to sit on the table and then very hesitantly pull his shirt off over his head.

Even though he had already seen the full extent of Logan's beating, Kendall couldn't hold back a gasp. He then muttered a few choice words that earned him a scolding look from Logan. But he didn't care. Anger burned so deep within him that he knew if Logan had actually described his assailants, he would have rushed right out of the hospital to go find them and beat them up himself.

"Can you breathe all right?" The doctor asked Logan who nodded and demonstrated by taking several deep breaths, only wincing slightly. He frowned slightly though when he put his hands on the boy's bare chest and he flinched away, teeth gritted in obvious pain. "I know you said nothing is serious but you might have a broken rib or two." He said gently.

Logan had secretly been thinking the same thing ever since Kendall forced him into the car and he almost passed out. The pain had only been increasing, especially when he moved. He gave up on trying to keep Kendall from worrying and simply nodded, biting his lip as he did do. How was he supposed to perform with broken ribs?

"How about we get an X-Ray of your ribs?" The doctor suggested gently. "We'll be able to tell then."

Logan had no choice. He and Kendall followed the doctor down the hall into another room where Kendall, much to his dismay, had to wait outside. Logan had only had one X-Ray before when he had injured his wrist in a game of hockey and the doctors thought it had been broken. He was as relaxed as he possible could be and closed his eyes while he waited. He just wanted this nightmare to end.

"Three cracked ribs," Kendall shook his head as he and Logan walked back out to the waiting room. "Three cracked ribs, a black eye, a fat lip, a minor concussion, and-" He broke off and glanced at Logan, shuddering slightly. "All those bruises. Logie, I hate that this happened to you. You've already had to deal with way too much lately.

"I'll live," Logan replied, looking down at his feet. He couldn't bear to see the guilt and sympathy in Kendall's eyes. He didn't deserve any of it because it was all his fault.

Kendall sighed. "How are you supposed to perform though?" He fretted. "There's no way you can dance or do back flips in your condition."

"I don't know," Logan said helplessly, tears blurring his eyesight and causing him to stumble slightly.

Kendall shot out an arm and steadied Logan. "This is my fault," He mumbled the words that Logan wished he would never have to hear. "If I hadn't accused you of taking Carlos' Ritalin, you would have never gotten so upset and gone for a walk. You wouldn't have gotten beaten up like this. I'm so sorry, Logan."

Logan felt like he was drowning in a sea of guilt. "Kendall," He began, his throat aching. He had to tell him. He had to tell Kendall. He couldn't let him take the blame.

But they were interrupted by Carlos and James who had jumped up from their chairs and rushed over to greet them. "Logan," James said with such intense relief that it was like he had thought he would have never seen Logan again. "How are you?"

Kendall answered for Logan. "Three cracked ribs, a minor concussion, and the rest of it you can see for yourself." The pain in his voice made Logan's heart ache painfully. "It's worse than we thought."

Carlos had stopped crying but his eyes were swollen and red. "Logie," He whispered in a trembling voice. "You're so hurt."

Logan wanted to make his friends feel better and he stood there wondering how on earth he was going to make them feel better and tell them about his problem at the same time. He was stuck. He would only make them feel worse but maybe in the end it would be better. "I'll be fine, Carlos." He said gently. He sighed and looked over James' shoulder. "Where are Gustavo and Kelly?"

James glanced at Carlos, suddenly nervous. "Uh, Gustavo got a call from Griffin and they went to go talk with him." He dropped his gazer and withdrew his lucky comb from his pocket, fiddling with the teeth. "They should be back any minute now." He bit his lip and then looked back up at Logan and Kendall. "Logie, don't get upset okay?"

"Why would I get upset?" Logan asked, instantly on the alarm.

"Because-" James started and stopped. "Because Griffin wasn't. . . very happy about. . . about what happened to you."

Dread filled Logan and he shivered slightly. "What do you mean?"

James looked like the last thing on earth he wanted to do was answer Logan but he was his best friend and wasn't about to refuse him anything. All the same when he saw Gustavo and Kelly walking towards them he looked ready to collapse with relief. "He'll should probably tell you himself." He mumbled, chickening out.

"Did you tell them?" Gustavo asked as he and Kelly approached.

"Wait," Kelly said before Kendall or Logan could even open their mouths. "Logan, how are you feeling?"

"It was a little worse than I thought," Logan admitted shamefully. "Three of my ribs are cracked and I have a concussion."

"Oh sweetie," Kelly said sympathetically. She glanced at Gustavo who looked completely defeated. "It's probably for the best then."

Gustavo nodded wordlessly.

"What's for the best?" Logan demanded.

"Logan," Gustavo sighed. "Kendall, I talked to Griffin. He's not happy with the way things have been working out lately, especially with what happened to Logan today. Don't. . . don't blame yourself, but he decided to cancel the rest of the tour."

A/N. Oh snap. I'm gonna go die now because I have like, the black plague or something. I'll write the remainder of my fics from my grave. I love you all!