Ladies and gentlemen, may I present...Chapter 11!

Disclaimer: Oh yeah, I totally own Big Time Rush. Just like I totally came up with the idea of chocolate and rock music...Oh, wait...I didn't! NOOO! All my dreams are crushed now! Ruined! Buried! As you can probably tell, I don't own Big Time Rush.

Warnings: Language and sexual themes

And now...my thank yous to those who I couldn't PM:

musiclover: Thank you so much for your review! I'm glad you liked that part! And oh yeah, a major cliffhanger...and Kendall's reaction...:)

mo-rizzle: Thank you so much for your review! And thank you! I'm happy you enjoyed the chapter! Well thank you very much! Jett's a complete jerk in the show anyway, but I just amp up his basic jerk-ish-ness. Well, we can't rule out Kendall committing murder, although he probably won't go that far ;)

M.G.N: Thank you so much! I'm glad it cracked you up...and...uh...that mistake...Wow...Um...Oopsies? Haha, thanks for being so nice about it, and I'm glad you got a good laugh out of it! :)

The Anonymous Reviewer: Thank you so much for your review! Haha, no they can't, someone or something always interrupts them. Yeah, I think there's a certain degree of irony there...:)

HUGS, KISSES, AND THANK YOUS GO OUT TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED, FAVORITED, OR ALERTED THIS STORY! You guys make me feel special, so thank you ;)

So, as a couple of people very politely and kindly pointed out, in the last chapter I accidentally wrote Kendall SCHMIDT instead of Kendall KNIGHT. Incase you noticed it, that was (obviously) a typo, so...ummm...if you just ignore it, I would greatly appreciate it. But if it makes you laugh, then I'm glad you can see the humor in it :)

So, this chapter is a major turning point in the story, and it's kind of the first part of the climax, although it's definitely not the ending.

So, as they say...Enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 11 – Time to Save our lives…Again!

James's POV

I couldn't believe I had done it. I couldn't believe I was the reason the rumors about Katie had started. I couldn't believe I had been such a jackass that I had made that sort of comment to someone and not even bothered to think about what I was doing. What the hell was wrong with me? Did I just like making life miserable for those who I cared the most about? I was the worst friend ever.

I really wish Katie had punched me, but instead all she did once the paparazzi left and Jett and Courtney oozed away was look at me and say, "Take me home please."

I nodded and made to take her hand so that I could lead her through the crowd in the club, but she pulled her hand back. "Don't touch me." Her gaze was cold and her voice was even icier.

"Okay. But stay close. I don't want to lose you in here."

I led her through the club and out the door. Once we were outside, I waited until she caught up with me before continuing to walk towards the car.

"Katie, I'm so sorry – "

"Save it."

"But I really am – "

"JUST SHUT THE HELL UP!" she screamed at me, whirling to face me. "Thanks to you, within about an hour, the entire world is going to think that I'm into bondage! Do you really think your apologies are going to make a difference at this point?"

"But Katie – " I could hear the whimper in my voice, and I didn't try to disguise it.

"Just. Take. Me. Home."

"All right," I sighed and continued to head for the car.

It was hard to believe that just an hour ago we had been walking towards the club, the best of friends…and maybe close to something more…

We finally reached the car and I unlocked the doors. Katie slid into the passenger's seat and crossed her arms, looking out the window, as I got into the driver's seat.

I glanced at her furious profile and felt my head drop. Kendall was right. I really am a fucker. I always fuck up everything, no matter what. And this time, I had fucked up my relationship with Katie…maybe for good.

I started the car up and pulled out onto the road, trying not to cry. I couldn't even imagine the hurt and betrayal Katie must have been feeling. All I knew was that I was beyond ashamed and angry with

myself. But for Katie it had to be a hundred times worse.

We finally reached the Palmwoods, and Katie immediately jumped out of the car and dashed for the hotel, leaving me to walk slowly towards the lobby, hands stuffed in my pockets. I saw her go in through the doors and paused, not wanting to crowd her.

I closed my eyes and bowed my head, letting the tears fall. I was so furious with myself I wasn't sure if I could stand it. I sank down to the ground, pulling my knees up to my chest, and wrapping my arms around my legs, shaking and sobbing, and wondering what Katie was doing at that moment. Probably making a voodoo doll of me and sticking pins in it. And I wouldn't blame her. I deserved it.

Eventually I managed to stop crying and dragged myself to my feet, slowly walking into the lobby. A movement outside in the pool caught my eye and I turned, just in time to see Katie break the surface of the water, slicking her hair back and gasping for breath.

Katie's POV

The ride home was complete torture. I was in total shock. I just couldn't wrap my head around the fact that James – my James, the James that called me Batie-Bear, the James who I had fallen for, the James who I had known since I was born – had said something so terrible about me. I wasn't even upset about the rumors, or about the fact that by this time there were probably stories up on all the online gossip blogs saying that I was in training to be a dominatrix. What I was hurt about the most was the fact that he had said that, that he had made a comment about that, and hadn't even thought anything about it.

After what felt like the longest car ride in the history of longest car rides, we finally pulled into the parking lot of the Palmwoods. I immediately unlocked the door and shot out, not bothering to wait for James to even turn off the ignition.

I ran for the lobby, but just as I pushed through the doors, I paused. I could see the Palmwoods pool, the blue water reflecting in the moonlight. Perfect.

I changed direction and raced outside. I kicked my shoes off and yanked my shirt off, leaving my camisole and shorts on. I made a running leap and cannon balled into the pool.

I closed my eyes and held my breath as I sank down to the bottom, wishing that I could stay down there for the rest of my life. But unfortunately, I'm not a mermaid or Percy Jackson, so after about ten seconds, I swam to the surface. I pushed my loose hair back out of my face and breathed in.

I paddled to the edge of the pool and rested against the wall, biting my lip against the tears that I knew were going to come.

Before the first tear could trickle out, though, I saw the doors open and James step out. In the moonlight I could see his face. His eyes were puffy and red and his face was tear streaked.

"What're you doing out here?" I asked harshly.

"I – I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

"Would you be okay?" I demanded.

"I meant – I don't know what I meant. I'll just – I'll just go."

"That's a good idea. Just leave! It's not like you care about me anyway!"

"Katie – !" my name came out in a strangled gasp.

I crawled out of the pool and walked over to him, the anger hitting me in the gut like a well-aimed punch. "If you really cared about me, you never would have said anything like that about me. You don't respect me, and you never did. So why don't you just fuck off?"

He grabbed my arm. "I do respect you! I – I don't know why I said it. I don't even remember what I was thinking when I said it. All I know is that I'm sorry."

"Yeah, you keep saying that. You say that a lot. And I'm kind of getting tired of hearing it come from you because you're trying to figure out how to clean up the mess you made. And believe me James, you are really good at making messes."

"I know."

"Is that all you can say? I know?"

"Well, what else am I supposed to say? I can't apologize, and all I can think of is to say how much I wish I hadn't said it! Katie, I care about you more than anything! I love you!"

I swear, my heart stopped. Time froze. I couldn't move. And then reality came flooding back.

I laughed bitterly. "You don't know what love is, and you never will!" And that's about the point I shoved him right into the pool.

He yelped as he went flying in, and surfaced a moment later, shaking the water out of his eyes.

"Feel better?"

"NO! I just want you gone! Out of my life! I never want to see your face again! NEVER!"

James swam to the side of the pool and lifted himself out, before walking over to me.

"Katie – "

I hauled back and decked him in the face. I didn't hit him hard enough to do any damage, but he still cringed and grabbed his nose.

But I wasn't done. I punched him in his stomach as hard as I could and he doubled over, wheezing a bit.

I stood over him, breathing heavily and ignoring the throbbing in the hand I had used to hit him.

"I guess I deserved that."

"You haven't even gotten what you deserve!" I screamed at him. "I HATE YOU, JAMES DIAMOND! I FUCKING HATE YOU!"

And that was the last straw. I burst into tears, my body shaking like I was having a seizure. James grabbed me and held me to him. "I'm so sorry, Batie-Bear," he murmured into my hair. "I'm so sorry."

I struggled against his grasp for a few seconds, but then all the strength just seemed to seep out of me and I collapsed against him, sobbing harder than I could ever remember. "I hate you! I hate you!"

"I know," he whispered. "I know."

"I hate you…"

"I know." I felt his body begin shaking against mine, and I knew he was crying too.

It took a little while for me to stop crying, but eventually I managed to calm down.

I stepped away from James and looked up into his face. He wiped a tear away from his cheek. "Katie, you are the most special and beautiful girl in the world, and I would do anything for you. I hate myself for what I did to you, and I'll never forgive myself. Just…just know that I'm truly sorry."

"I know you are." I glanced around, before saying, "I'm going inside. I'll see you in the morning."

And I walked away, leaving him standing, soaking wet, by the pool.

Once I was inside the dark apartment, I walked to the kitchen and grabbed an icepack from the freezer, holding it to my aching hand. It wasn't the first time I had hit anyone, but it was still a shock that my fist hurt as bad as it did.

Not wanting to see James when he finally got up to the apartment, I took the icepack to my room, and slumped down on my bed, feeling completely and totally drained. The reality of the situation was beginning to sink in.

James started the rumors.

But he didn't mean to.

He still started them.

But it was an accident.

But he still implied that you were into bondage.

He feels horrible about that.

He shouldn't have said it in the first place.

He admitted he was being a jackass.

It's all his fault Courtney and Jett had something to use against me.

But he never meant to hurt you.

He still did.

But he loves you!

But he – he did say that, didn't he?

I blinked. He had told me he loved me. But what had he meant by it? Did he mean, "Oh, I love you like a sister and I would never mean to hurt you" or "I love you as in I'm totally in love with you and I want to be with you and I'm broken hearted because I broke your heart"? What had he meant? AAAAGH! I shouldn't even be thinking about this right now! He had completely betrayed me!

But he cried because he had hurt you so badly…

I collapsed on my bed, wishing that this night had never happened. My only comfort was that maybe I would feel better in the morning.

James's POV

I don't know how long I stood there, but eventually it occurred to me that I was going to have to get up in the morning to help with the wedding preparations, and I better go to bed. I headed up to the apartment, not really noticing anything.

I dried myself off in the bathroom and stripped down to my boxers and nothing else, before climbing into bed.

I could hear Carlos's snoring from the next bed, but I couldn't sleep.

I kept replaying the entire day in my mind. There were moments when it had seemed like I might actually have a chance with Katie, but now…

My heart was breaking for her. I berated myself until I could no longer think straight, and I fell into a disturbed sleep, still thinking about Katie and the damage I might have done.

I was awoken the next morning by someone shaking me. I moaned and swatted aimlessly at them, trying to get them to just leave me alone.

"Come on, jackass, you need to get up," Katie said. She didn't sound as angry as she had last night, which was a good sign.

"Don't…wanna…"

"I will yank you out of bed if I have to."

"Go ahead and try…" I stuffed my face into my pillow. As much as I wanted her forgiveness, I was going on about four hours of sleep. But if this was how she got her revenge…

"Well, if you insist…"

The next thing I knew, the covers had been ripped off of my body and Katie had grabbed one of my bare shoulders, doing her very best to drag me out of bed. I turned my head so that I could look at her. She was scowling and muttering under her breath.

"I'm still waiting for you to pull me out of bed," I teased her, smirking slightly. It was easier to treat her normally now that she was no longer screaming at me.

"If I have to, I will dump water all over your head," she threatened. "I'm still pissed at you about those rumors, so right now, nothing is off limits."

I groaned and rolled over onto my back. I had known she was still angry about what I had said, but a huge part of me had hoped that she had forgiven me. "Katie, I'm so sorry for what I said! I don't want to go another week without talking to you! Just tell me what I can do to make it up to you!"

She smiled slyly. "Groveling never hurts. Neither does being pushed into pools."

Well, if she wanted to play that way…

I grabbed her wrist and yanked her down on top of me. Her eyes widened and my heart immediately began racing against hers. I waited for a moment, but she didn't protest or even try to struggle. Perfect.

I grinned. "Please, please, please forgive me! I couldn't live with myself if you didn't!" I flipped her under me so that I was hovering over her and held her hands above her head, squeezing her legs with my knees so that she couldn't move. "Please, Katie Knight, don't cut me off, I need you! You know I never meant to hurt you, right?"

Her chest was heaving and I could feel her pulse in her wrist beating rapidly against my fingers.

"I – I suppose…"

It was in that second that I realized how it would look to anyone who just suddenly walked into the room – a half-naked me hovering over a semi-dressed her. Oh wow…our current situation appealed to me a little too much…

I let go of her wrists and in a split second she was back on top of me, her hands on my chest and I felt my breathing pick up. "So this is how you grovel? You keep me trapped under you while you plead with me to forgive you? You are seriously messed up, dude."

My fingers enclosed hers and I felt a smile tug at my lips. "But that's why you love me, right?"

She blushed and didn't answer, and I flashed back to what I had said the night before: "I love you"... Instead she just crawled off of me and straightened out the tank top and cotton shorts that she slept in, which was probably a good thing, because…remember those performance problems with Courtney? Yeah, I was kind of experiencing the opposite of those at the moment, and if Katie had stayed on top of me much longer, she was going to notice the issue at hand. Maybe she already had, but I seriously hoped she hadn't, because that would just be plain embarrassing. But there was no way I was standing up now. Instead I flipped over onto my stomach and waited for her to speak.

"Come on," she said. "Mom's making pancakes, and then Jo, Camille, and Mr. Taylor are coming here to continue arranging the wedding. Jo wants to focus on clothes, so we all need to be there, because she wants our input on the bridesmaid dresses and their escorts' suits." She paused before continuing on. "And Kendall wants to focus on the music. He doesn't want Big Time Rush performing there, because he wants the night to be totally relaxing and leisurely; instead he's talking about hiring a DJ. But nothing's certain, because he and Jo keep changing their minds about everything. I'm beginning to think the baby's going to be driving before its parents' wedding happens."

I felt the blood begin to drain out of my – ahem – lower half, so I dared to crawl out of bed and straighten up. "Sounds like we've got a lot to do today."

"Way to simplify things, Diamond," she said. "And put a shirt on, Kendall will have a heart attack if he knows I came in here when you were half naked."

"You are really wired today, Miss Knight."

"I am? Oh, crap. I – I don't know what I'm saying – and – and – " she closed her eyes. "Kendall and Mom are getting crazier by the minute, and I think it's rubbing off on me."

I took her by her shoulders and lowered my head so that I could stare into her eyes. Her brown eyes were wide and had a bit of a wild look about them, no doubt from the pressure of planning a wedding that was happening in six days. "Breathe," I told her. "Just breathe. Relax. We're going to get through this." I paused. "Uhhh…has anyone sent out invitations yet?"

I swear, her pupils dilated. "OH SHIT! NO! Oh man…I've gotta go tell Mom and Kendall…Oh, oh, oh…"

And she raced out of my bedroom, leaving me gaping after her and wondering what the chances were that she was going to get to the wedding before having a heart attack.

I snatched a t-shirt up from a pile of clothes at the foot of my bed and slipped it on, before heading out to the kitchen.

The place was in absolute chaos. Katie and Mrs. Knight were on Katie's laptop, trying to choose a specific invitation to order from some print shop or other. Kendall was on his phone, trying to make arrangements to hold the wedding at a church not too far from the studio. "LOOK!" he was shouting into his cell phone. "I DON'T CARE IF TWO-HUNDRED OF HIS CLOSEST FRIENDS AND RELATIVES ARE FLYING INTO LOS ANGELES TO BURY HIM, I'M GETTING MARRIED AND I NEED THE CHURCH THAT AFTERNOON!"

Carlos and Logan were on Logan's laptop, trying to find a decent catering menu from a decent caterer.

"Eeeeew, no way, who's going to want to have to shell crab legs at a wedding?" Logan was saying to Carlos.

Carlos shrugged. "How should I know? I wouldn't mind."

"You're also the one who thought that a floating fire truck was the coolest thing ever."

"THAT'S BECAUSE IT IS!"

Needless to say, tempers were running a bit high.

"No, no, no," Katie said to Mrs. Knight from where she was sitting at the breakfast bar. "We can't order those, they're all pink and gross – they look like Paris Hilton threw up on them."

There was a pan of uneaten pancakes on the stove. I snatched one up and bit into it like a sandwich without bothering to put anything on it. It was still warm and soft and smooth.

"What can I do?" I asked.

"Try to reason with the stupid church people!" Kendall roared. "They won't let me rent out the church because some guy died a couple of days ago and his family wants to hold the service there. I mean, can you believe it? I'm still alive! I'm getting married! I'm having an effing kid!"

"Why don't we try to find another church?" I suggested.

Kendall paused in his ranting. "That might actually work. Okay, come on, the phone book is over here." He sniffed me. "Why do you smell like pool chlorine?"

Katie hid a smile with her hand.

I winced. Oops. I had forgotten about Katie pushing me into the pool the night before.

"I fell in the pool," I said quickly.

Kendall threw me a look that let me know he didn't really believe me, but he let the subject drop, which I appreciated.

Apparently the rumors about Katie and me and Jett and Courtney hadn't reached him, or anyone else in the room for that matter, yet. That was good. Now if only we could go another week without them finding out about the night before. That would be even better!

I followed Kendall over to the breakfast bar. The phone book was right next to Katie, and I squeezed in

next to her.

Kendall flipped it open and began scrolling through the C section. "Okay, here's a church that's only a couple of miles away. The phone number is – "

"Wait just a second! Why do I have to call them up?"

"Because I've been dealing with stupid people all morning! It's your turn!"

With a sigh, I retrieved my phone from my bedside table and came back out into the kitchen. "Okay Kendall, give me the number…"

An hour later, I had called up approximately twenty-three churches. There were a lot of funerals and weddings for next Saturday, it seemed. I finally found a small church that had the afternoon free, because the funeral was a morning service.

It was a relief to get into the shower and ease some of the tension that had been building in my joints. Geh. Stupid people. And it was only ten AM! How the hell was I supposed to make it another twelve or fourteen hours? Aaaagh, the tragedy of it all…But…Katie didn't seem to mind when I pulled her down on top of me…Forget my previous complaint. Another twelve or fourteen hours in her company, with the possibility of flirting shamelessly with her? Sign me up!

I was suddenly very happy that Kendall couldn't read my thoughts, because otherwise he would have beat me to a bloody pulp. But I didn't really care. I was going to enjoy myself today!

Katie's POV

I stepped out of my bedroom in denim shorts, a t-shirt, and flip-flops, feeling much calmer since I had gotten out of the shower. James really hadn't helped lower my blood pressure that morning when he had decided to yank me down on top of him. Okay, I admit, I didn't exactly fight him, and I definitely didn't mind it. But…It was not a good time for hormones to come into play, and that's exactly what happened when I ended up on top of him. And I had the sneaking suspicion that his hormones had ended up running rampant too, due to a certain bulge in a certain place of his lower body…Okay, okay, Katie, get your mind out of the gutter. But he had totally gotten turned on. Heehee…maybe I was slightly desirable to him after all…

I had calmed down since the night before – I no longer wanted to kill him. After a somewhat decent night's sleep, I had decided that screaming at him wasn't going to solve anything. I was still angry with him, but I knew he hadn't meant to do what he did and that he wished it had never happened, and while that didn't change what had happened, it did give me a reason not to hate him, and that was what I had needed.

James was sitting at the table, looking through a list of songs that Kendall had written out to be played at the wedding reception.

My face immediately flushed as I replayed the entire scene from his bedroom in my mind. If pulling me down on top of him and then rolling me under him wasn't flirting than I don't know what was.

He looked up as I walked into the room. He had changed into board shirts and a t-shirt, not too far a cry from what he had – or hadn't – been wearing that morning.

Okay, focus Katie, focus!

"Jo will kill Kendall if she sees some of these requests," James griped as I took a seat next to him. He slid the list across the table to me and I picked it up.

"There is no way Jo will want any Bullet For My Valentine songs playing at the reception," I groaned. "The girl listens to Colbie Caillat and Carrie Underwood. Somehow, I don't see her being into the idea of dancing to Teardrops Don't Fall."

"I know, but every time I try to reason with Kendall, he just tunes me out. He's his own worst enemy!"

At that moment, there was a loud rapping on the front door. James and I glanced at each other, and then I got to my feet and went to the door to open it.

Jo, Camille, and Mr. Taylor all stood on the threshold.

"How're the preparations going?" Camille asked brightly as Jo pushed her way into the room with Mr. Taylor following right behind her.

"Aaaagh…!"

"That good, huh?"

"Funny, Camille, absolutely fucking hilarious."

"Oooh, you didn't even come up with a smartass comment. Guess who's in a bad mood," Camille sing-songed with amusement as she slid by me. I let the door slam behind her.

"You would be too if you had to deal with stupid companies who think they're the next Hallmark," I complained.

"AAAGH, I'M GOING TO KILL KENDALL!" James screamed, still sitting at the table.

"You are not touching my fiancé and my baby's father!" Jo cried.

"Why do you want to kill him now?" I asked in alarm as I rushed over to him.

"Same reason as before," he said quickly, nodding at Jo.

"Oh, right, of course."

"Oooh, is that the music list? Lemme see!" Jo snatched the paper right out of James's hands before he could even move, and a moment later, she shrieked out, "KENDALL KNIGHT, GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE!"

Kendall and Logan both came scurrying out of their bedroom, trying to yank shirts over their heads, their jeans still unbuttoned. Oh yeah, that was a pleasant sight.

"You called, dear?" Kendall asked meekly as he tried to get his head through the neck hole.

Jo brandished the paper at him like it was a whip. "WHY IS THREE DAYS GRACE ON THE MUSIC LIST?"

He managed to get the shirt down and quickly buttoned his jeans. "You don't like Three Days Grace?"

James, Logan, Camille, Mr. Taylor, and I all simultaneously face-palmed.

There was another knock on the door at that moment. I dragged myself out of the chair to open the door.

Gustavo Rocque and Kelly Wainwright were standing there.

"Are the Dogs here?" Gustavo demanded gruffly, glowering down at me.

"KENDALL KNIGHT, I AM NOT DANCING TO BREAKING BENJAMIN AT MY OWN WEDDING RECEPTION!"

"How about Anberlin?"

"AAAAGH!"

I turned back to Gustavo and Kelly. "Yeah, they're here."

I stepped back to let them inside before closing the door behind them.

"So, your mom called this morning," Gustavo began, talking directly to Kendall. "She told us about the wedding – and THE UNEXPECTED PREGNANCY!"

Kelly glared at Gustavo. "We've talked about this," she said in a low voice. "It was unplanned, but you do not yell at Kendall." She turned back to us and added cheerfully, "So we thought we'd come down here and help."

"Really?" Kendall said with a look of fake-happiness on his face. "How…nice…of her not to tell me."

"She didn't want you boarding the door shut," Logan said to Kendall, just as Carlos stepped out of his and James's room.

"Gustavo…and Kelly…how nice to see you both…in our apartment…"

"Now say it like you mean it," Gustavo retorted. He was in a good mood today. If he'd been cranky, we'd all be cowering on top of the swirly slide while he shouted and threw furniture around and maybe tried to get his hands on some of our steak knives.

"So what can we do to help?" Kelly asked eagerly.

Mom came out of her bedroom, twisting her hair back in a ponytail. "There might be a problem with holding the reception in our apartment – Bitters might not be too willing. Could you by any chance bribe him into letting us have it here?"

Gustavo sighed. "I suppose. Kelly, write out a check. Let's go."

They left the apartment and Kendall and Jo immediately turned back to each other while the rest of us watched, half-amused, half-horrified that these were the people were supposed to be getting married and raising a baby.

"Now who would you rather dance to at our wedding reception?" Kendall demanded.

"Justin Bieber?"

"There is no way in hell – "

"How about clothes?" I quickly interrupted. "We can discuss music later. Jo, James and I grabbed a catalog from that bridal shop down at the mall."

"I even bought her a dress that would work perfectly for the wedding, although if you don't like it, she can just wear it at the reception," James told Jo.

"Can I see the catalog?" she asked.

I grabbed the catalog from a huge stack of various papers and catalogs and menus on the breakfast bar and handed it to her.

She flipped through it, pausing at each page to admire the dresses. "Which dress did you buy, James?"

He got up from his chair and went over to her. He turned through the pages until he reached a particular one. "That dress. She looked beyond beautiful in it." He looked up at me and smiled, making my stomach flop around and my heart speed up.

"It is gorgeous…" Jo admitted. "And it is a summer wedding, and it would work perfectly…We could put Camille in a variation of the dress, with her being the maid of honor and all…And my costar, Bethany, would look gorgeous in it as well – she's my other bridesmaid." She thought for a moment, and then nodded. "This will work. I'll take Cami and Bethany down to the bridal shop tomorrow and have them fitted for the dress. Thanks Katie, thanks James, that just made my decision a lot easier!"

"Not a problem," James said casually.

"Now for the men's clothes…Kendall, have you decided who's going to be your best man?"

Kendall cleared his throat as all eyes turned to him. "I was actually hoping all three of you would be my best men. If that's okay with you, honey," he added quickly and Jo laughed.

Immediately James, Carlos, and Logan all coughed out "Whipped".

Kendall, Jo, and I all glared at them before Jo and Kendall turned back to each other, and Jo said,

"It's your choice, not mine."

James grinned and grabbed Kendall in a hug. "Of course we'll be your best men! Right guys?" he called over his shoulder at Carlos and Logan, who both leapt into the hug as well.

"Of course! What else are we going to do at your wedding?" Carlos cried, and Logan added,

"It wouldn't be a Big Time Rush wedding without all of us!"

"So, anyway, back to the best men's clothes," Jo redirected the conversation. "I'm thinking simple suits with gold ties and maybe a gold rose in the buttonhole."

Kendall nodded. "That sounds good. And your dress and my suit?"

"We'll decide separately. You're not allowed to see my dress before the wedding, remember? It's bad luck!"

"So the clothes are decided on? Great! Okay, so back to the music," Kendall insisted.

"How about we just play a mixture of pop and pop/rock songs?" Jo suggested. "Katy Perry, Simple Plan, Allstar Weekend, just a healthy mix, but nothing too heavy."

Kendall nodded again. "I guess that would work."

"Invitations!" Mom cried. "Kendall, Jo, come look at these. Tell me what you think."

The lovebirds went over to where Mom was set up in the living room with my laptop.

"I like this one – " Kendall tapped his finger against the screen, but Jo winkled her nose.

"Yech, no, that's tacky. How about this one?"

"No way, that's hideous. How about – ?"

The door opened again and Gustavo and Kelly walked into the room.

"Bitters is happy and he won't say anything," Kelly reported.

"If I have to keep on paying Bitters not to kick you Dogs out, Rocque Records is going to go broke," Gustavo grumbled.

"Thanks Gustavo, we really appreciate it," Mom said gratefully.

He nodded, just as his phone went off. He pulled it out and glanced at it, before beginning to spew out cuss words.

"JAMES! WHY THE HELL IS BONDAGE, SEX, KATIE KNIGHT, AND JAMES DIAMOND THE MOST SEARCHED FOR TOPICS THIS MORNING ON GOOGLE? AND WHY ARE THERE PICTURES OF YOU TWO AT A HOLLYWOOD CLUB, MAKING OUT?"

Kendall immediately dashed over to Gustavo and grabbed his phone. "Holy…" he was shaking. His face was turning red. His fists were clenched. "You two are so dead."

"It's not what it looks like!" James yelped out.

"We weren't making out!"

"YOU WERE LYING ON TOP OF JAMES!"

Kendall advanced towards us, backing us towards the front door.

"What happened?" Mom asked through clenched teeth.

"It was all a huge misunderstanding!" I cried.

"YOU TWO ARE HAVING SEX! AND THIS PICTURE AND ARTICLE PROVES IT!"

"Jett and Courtney were there…they were saying a whole bunch of – "

"DON'T TRY TO PUSH THIS OFF ON ANYONE ELSE, DIAMOND! YOU – YOU – YOU – !"

Uh oh. He was stuttering. That was a really bad sign.

James and I glanced at each other, paused for a split second while Kendall came towards us, fists raised, and then he yanked the front door open and we both ran for it. We skidded down the hall, down the stairs, and into the lobby.

"Where to?" he yelped.

"I don't know!"

"You know, this is the second time we've had to run for our lives from Kendall after I acted like a jackass."

I glanced at him. "You're right. You really need to stop acting like a jackass, because at this rate we're going to end up getting killed."

"I'll do my best."

"Palmwoods Park!" I suggested, and we both ran through the doors and outside.

It was a beautiful day, with the sun shining and the temperature in the eighties, but I couldn't focus on that.

We didn't stop running until we were a good distance away from the hotel.

As we stopped to catch our breath, I looked over at James. "By the way, James, I forgive you."

His face lit up, and suddenly…suddenly…he grabbed me, pulled me to him, and pressed his lips against mine.

I froze in shock, but then something in my brain seemed to click and I kissed him back. His hands were at my back, holding me to him, and I wrapped my arms around his neck. Wow…this was…I couldn't even describe it. It was better than my wildest fantasies. It was better than chocolate. And it was every bit as good as him shirtless.

And that's when my phone went off.

We jumped away from each other as my phone vibrated, and I winced. Perfect timing.

Avoiding his eyes, I pulled my phone out and saw that Scarlett was calling me. What the heck?

"Scar, listen, it's not really – "

"Kyle just broke up with me!" she wailed.

"Wait – what?"

"He just broke up with me, and I don't know why!" she was sobbing so hard that she could barely get the words out.

"But – but – I thought you said the relationship wasn't going to last very long anyway!"

"I – I was hoping that if I said it then – then maybe – maybe it would jinx it and our relationship would – would be okay!"

"Ohhhh…Scarlett, I'm so sorry. You honestly don't know why he broke up with you?"

"No!"

"Well, I'm going to find out!" And I hung up.

I stuffed my phone back in my pocket, absolutely seething. Scarlett had been a better friend to me in the last week than Kyle had ever been to me in all the years I had known him. How dare he break up with her! She sounded absolutely heartbroken, and at that moment I wanted nothing more than to punch Kyle in the face.

"Kyle broke up with Scarlett and didn't tell her why. And I'm going to go find out! No one does that to a friend of mine and gets away with it!" I began marching towards the hotel, and James kept pace with me.

"Katie, Kendall might be looking for us – "

"I don't care! My friend is heartbroken! I can't just let it go!"

"Katie – Kyle might have broken up with Scarlett because of you."

I froze in my tracks. That was what I had wanted all along, right? For Kyle to want me as much as I wanted him? And then I looked at James, whose lips were glittering with my lip gloss. My decision had been made the day he had comforted me when I had had my breakdown, and I hadn't even realized it. I was only going after Kyle because it had become a habit, not because I really wanted to.

"I don't care. I don't care why he did it. The point is that he did do it, and I'm going to find out why. And if he doesn't have a good enough answer, I'm going to break his nose."

And with those words and renewed determination, I began stalking towards the hotel again.

I stormed into the lobby, up the stairs, and to Kyle's apartment. I banged as hard as I could on the door, and kept on banging until he opened it.

He stared at me in alarm. "Katie – what – ?"

"Why did Scarlett just call me, crying her eyes out, and telling me that you broke up with her and she didn't know why?" I demanded through clenched teeth.

Kyle shrugged. "Probably because I did just break up with her and I didn't tell her why."

How could he be so casual about that?

It was the way he acted like it was no big deal that pissed me off. And that's why I punched him right in his nose.

"OW! WHAT THE HELL?"

"That's what you get for acting like such a jackass and a man whore!" I screeched.

"I wasn't acting like a man whore!"

"Oh yeah? Then how is it that you go through girls the way other people go through tissues? How is it that you can break up with a girl and not even care that you broke her heart? How can you just stand there and look so innocent? How can you even live with yourself?"

"Because I know why I do what I do."

"And why is that? Hmm Kyle? Gonna tell me? Why do you treat girls like crap? Why do you treat me like that? Why are you such a jackass?"

"Because – because – I only date those girls to make someone jealous!"

"And who would that someone be, Kyle? Hmmm? Because I'd really like to know!"

"It – it doesn't matter! It never has! I can't have them! They'll never want me! They're already dating someone else!"

"Who is it Kyle?" I asked through gritted teeth. "TELL ME WHO IT IS!"

"NO!"

"YES!"

"FINE! I WANT YOU, JAMES!"

There was complete and total silence.

Wow. I definitely did not see that one coming.

So, who saw that coming? I know some of you did, at least after Chapter 7. And then a lot of you changed your mind after Chapter 8, but...it turns out you were right after all! And how about the kiss, or the "I love you"? Okay, I admit it, I had fun with that chapter. I've been looking forward to writing this chapter since I started the story, so hopefully I did it justice :)

On another note, my professors decided to band together and dump tests, one day apart, on me. Plus, I have a paper due in a week, but studying for the tests will probably take up some time, so I might not update for a few days. But with any luck, I'll have the next chapter up by Friday evening at the latest. I just wanted to warn everyone =)

So, the review button...It just got robbed of all it's review button money and could really use some comfort. And I want you to comfort it. And yes, I know I'm weird, but at least I've accepted it and refused help - it's been offered a couple different times :) So if you want to review and let me know what you thought about this chapter...I definitely won't be complaining ;)