Chapter 55 Adam

A/N: Sorry this was late! Been busy! Testing will be starting soon!

PLEASE ENJOY! :)


Logan stared in horror. His eyes were wide, mouth gaping, body trembling from shock. The sounds of gunshots ringing in his ears made it all the more traumatic. He fought back the flashes of Wade holding a gun to his face, only barely being able to keep himself from throwing up. Fresh tears cascaded from his face as rushed around the desk and collapsed to his knees beside Adam's body.

He knelt down further, grabbing onto the still body. "No! Adam! Please, come back!" he sobbed. His body shook as he kept begging, his word eventually becoming unintelligible.

Kendall was frozen. The shock from having the gun pointed directly at his face hadn't worn off yet. Just a few seconds ago he was staring at death right in the face. Literally. Now, somehow things had twisted and Adam's body was on the floor, Logan kneeling over him. Logan.

The thought of the name alone was enough for Kendall to snap into action. He rushed around the desk and tried to pry him from the unmoving body, but to no avail. The boy wouldn't let go of his friend.

Remembering what Logan had once taught him, Kendall reached for the wrist on the floor. The palm was facing upward, making him even more hesitant to work up the nerve to touch it. Instead of picking up the wrist –in fear of causing more damage- Kendall just placed two fingers on the upturned wrist and closed his eyes. Dulling his other senses, he began to feel a slight thump. And another. And soon, one after that. The beat was weak, but steady.

"Somebody call 911! He still has a pulse!" Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. No one really knew how they felt when Adam held them hostage. They were confused. Those who had known him for the little time that they did, were shocked by his outburst. They were scared. They were confused. But they knew he didn't deserve to die.

James pulled out his cell phone and quickly dialed 911. The already short number was set on speed dial 9, after a few stunts that went too far. He spoke rapidly, but clearly. After telling the operator the situation, he hung up and walked over to where Carlos was already trying to comfort the two kneeling next to Adam.

He placed a hand on Kendall's shoulder. "The ambulance is on its way. They'll be here soon. The hospital isn't too far from here.

Kendall looked up at James and nodded. His eyes, red with stress, shifted as he turned to Logan. "Hear that, Logie? The ambulance is gonna be here. He's gonna be okay. Just stay calm, okay?" He did his best to console the sobbing boy. Logan eventually nodded and let go of Adam's body, only to immediately latch onto Kendall.

Kendall rubbed soothing circles into his back as he cried into his chest. "Shh…it's gonna be okay. It's gonna be okay." Even as he repeated the words over and over, he couldn't help the doubt that racked his mind.


They sat silently as the limo crawled down the freeway. Kendall glanced around the cabin. Darrow was clutching his phone tightly, awaiting for news on the trial and more importantly, Adam. Logan was still clinging to his side despite having fallen asleep an hour ago. James and Carlos were a few feet away speaking in hushed tones.

He looked out the window and sighed, causing the window to fog up slightly. It was 8PM. The time LA traffic was not exactly at its worst, but still kept them from getting where they needed to go. Checking the monitor attached to the inner roof, he breathed out a sigh of relief. They were going at 25 miles, and there was only about 2 more miles until they reached the hospital. They would've been there earlier, but Mrs. Knight and Katie had to be dropped off at home. Gustavo and Kelly agreed to meet them at the hospital.

Darrow's phone rang, breaking the uncomfortable silence and waking Logan. Darrow picked it up quickly and spoke. Logan wiped his eyes, trying to wake up fully. Kendall kissed his head. "How you holding up?"

"Better…how far along are we?"

Kendall glanced at the monitor again. "You should stay up after Darrow finishes. We're almost there."

Logan nodded and turned to Darrow. "Yes…Okay…Yes, alright…Thank you…Goodnight." He ended the call and turned to Logan. "Hawk's been sentenced. You won't be hearing from him for a very long time, Logan. Congratulations."

Logan nodded. Kendall managed to lift the corners of his mouth slightly. "Thanks, John. You've done so much for us."

Everyone nodded in agreement. John smiled, sadly. "It's not a problem. I did what I do best, now I'm here, just like the rest of you…waiting to hear news of Adam's health."

Carlos couldn't hold in what he wanted to say anymore. "Why did he do it? I mean, yeah, sure, he wanted you back, Logan. But he could've just asked you first. He didn't have to go berserk…or at least, right away, anyway."

Everyone turned to Carlos then to Logan. The brunet knew someone would ask. He wasn't surprised it was Carlos, either. The boy may not have been the smartest, but he was attentive and ever-curious.

Logan looked down and began playing with his hands. "He..he did, actually. Right before we went back inside he told me he wanted to ask me something. He asked me…he asked me to give him another chance after all of this was over." He looked up into Kendall's eyes. "And I said no. I told him I couldn't. I told him I'm with Kendall now." Logan looked back down. "He was pretty upset. I tried apologizing, but he told me to forget it and we went back inside."

Everyone nodded. Carlos turned back to James who nodded. The tall brunet decided to voice his concern. "Carlos and I figured as much. I mean, it was pretty obvious when you didn't come back right away. But I still find it crazy. I mean, Adam was our friend. He was a good guy. Why would he…"

He didn't finish the question. They all knew what he meant and no one wanted to repeat what happened.

Logan's eyes shifted around, indicating his mind at work. He was debating with himself whether or not to say what he was thinking. His heart told him he was being stupid, but his rational mind told him it was a possibility.

"We haven't known him for all that long…maybe…maybe we weren't so right about him."

The all watched the nervous genius sadly. The limo pulled to a stop. Darrow looked out the window and nodded. "Let's discuss this later. We're here. We need to hurry inside. We're at the side entrance, but it won't be long before the paparazzi notice the limo around the corner."


BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…

The beeping soon became too loud for him to take. He willed his eyes to open. White. That was all he saw before he closed his eyes again. He tried to open his eyes again, but the first try took too much out of him. He stopped trying and let the unconsciousness take over.


BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…

This time there was something else. Sniffles. At least, that's what he thought they were. The beeping and sniffles were insistent, only adding to his migraine. Remembering the last time, he carefully peaked his eyes open, only enough to see through the eyelashes.

His eyes watered as they adjusted to the bright light. He let out a strangled groan. Getting up wasn't an option at the moment.

"Logan, he's waking up." Logan looked up from where he sat, face buried in Kendall's embrace, and hurried over to Adam's side.

"Adam?" His voice cracked, strained from all the crying he'd done.

Adam slowly opened his eyes completely. "Logan…"

Kendall rushed over to Logan's side. "Adam, we're glad you're awake." The blond was wearing a smile. A genuine smile.

"Kendall…" Adam tried to sit up, and immediately regretted it. Logan gently placed a hand on his shoulder, keeping him down. "The doctor said not to let you move on your own."

Adam nodded as best as he could and said, "Could you adjust the bed so I can sit up?"

Logan did so. They all remained where they were awkwardly waiting for the other to speak first. Adam decided to take the initiative. "Logan…Kendall…" His voice cracked as he tried to figure out how to piece his words together. "…I'm…I'm so sorry. I don't know what came over me. I just…I wasn't thinking and…and then I had my gun and…I'm so sorry."

He looked up when he felt a hand on his shoulder. Adam winced when his vision connected the arm to Kendall. The younger boy had a hard expression on his face that Adam couldn't decipher. Before he could utter another apology, the corners of Kendall's mouth lifted. He was smiling.

Adam stared up at the blond with confusion. Why was he smiling? He turned to Logan, only to receive the same smile, if not a bit teary and red. "W-why are you smiling? You should hate me."

Kendall frowned slightly when he heard what the older boy said. "Adam, we talked while you were asleep. And now, your apology helped us confirm our choice. We still want you to be our friend. You had a reason for what you did. You weren't over Logan."

Logan picked up. "You went through all of that hard work for me."

"You saw your dad just being plain awful."

"And then you saw Kendall and me…that was probably our fault. We were practically flaunting our relationship in front of you."

Kendall nodded his agreement. "We're sorry. But more importantly, we should all just put that behind us. It's all over now. We can just move on with our lives."

Adam stared at them, not believing that they were forgiving him. "I-"

Logan interrupted him. "Don't Adam." He wiped his eyes. "Let's just forget it."

Adam nodded, feeling almost like a scolded child. When he looked down at his hands he noticed the lights were unusual. Glancing at the window, he realized that it was daytime. "W-what time is it?"

Kendall chuckled. "It's 2 in the afternoon…you were shot 2 days ago."

Adam's eyes widened slightly as he took it in. He'd been out for 2 days. "O-okay."

Logan smiled a bit wider. "The doctor says you're gonna make a full recovery. The bullets all missed your vital organs. They said it was a miracle!"

Adam didn't know how to react. His first thought was to smile and cheer, but then he noticed Logan's watery red eyes. "Why are you crying? I though you said I'd make a full recovery."

Logan kept his smile as he wiped away his tears. "Sorry, I just saw you laying there and I guess I haven't gotten over the image of you on the floor of the courtroom. I'm just glad you're okay."

Kendall wrapped an arm around Logan's shoulders. "We were really worried for you, man."

"Thanks. I've…never had someone worry about me…it's…nice." They all chuckled.

They small talked for a while before Adam finally asked the question that had been on his mind since Logan mentioned him on the floor. "What happened to my…my dad?"

Kendall and Logan frowned. They looked at each other. Kendall decided to tell him. "Your shot hit him right in the center of his chest. It got his heart. He died on scene. Sorry, Adam…he's dead."

Adam alternated his gaze from Kendall to Logan. Their expressions told him it was true. "I…I don't know how to feel. I mean, he caused me so much pain…but he's still my dad. I guess I do know I feel. I feel relieved. And then I feel guilty because of that. My dad is dead…and I feel relieved."

Logan placed a hand on Adam's shoulder. "Adam, I know what you're going through. When…when my dad committed suicide…I...I was still angry at him for abandoning me. When he died…I was happy. For a few minutes, I felt happy that he was dead. I thought, he got what he deserved. And then I felt so guilty for feeling that way.

"I eventually got through it. I apologized to him at his funeral. The idea just occurred to me when I stood in front of his coffin. Your dad…he did some…awful, awful things…but he's your dad. These are your feelings. When the time comes, you'll know what to do and how to feel."

Adam looked up at Logan, a tear had slipped from his eyes. "Really?"

"Really."

There was a knock on the door. It opened and Dr. Till walked in with Darrow right behind him. Dr. Till smiled at them. Adam, I'm glad you're awake. How are you feeling?"

"Fine, doctor. Thank you."

Dr. Till nodded. "Alright, well Mr. Darrow would like to have a word with you boys. Afterward, I'd like you all to leave so that the nurse can change Adam's bandages." They nodded. "She'll be outside the door." With that, Dr. Till left the room.

Darrow walked over to the bed. "Glad you're feeling better, Adam."

"Thanks, John. What did you want to tell us?"

Darrow pulled up a chair and sat down. "Well, it concerns what you did a few days ago in court."

Everyone became serious as they waited for Darrow to go on. "Dr. Monroe, Dr. Till, Gustavo, Kelly, and I spoke with the police and Judge Davis yesterday. You won't be having any charges pressed against you, considering there really isn't anyone to press them. And the court found you not guilty by reason of temporary insanity."

Adam raised an eyebrow. "Temporary insanity?"

Darrow, Logan, and Kendall nodded. Darrow continued. "We explained everything that happened, including yours and Logan's relationship. Dr. Monroe also backed us up on it. The court agreed that you will be allowed to go free as long as you go to therapy with Dr. Monroe for the next few months. And Gustavo was happy to pay for your sessions in return for all of your help."

"Wow…remind me to thank him. So I won't be going to jail or anything?"

"No, you're in the clear." Darrow smiled. They all chatted a bit for a while before they had to leave.

Darrow was the first to leave. Kendall and Logan walked side by side to the door only to stop when Adam called to them. "Logan. Kendall."

They turned to face him. They spoke simultaneously.

"Thanks."


A/N: So there were some parts of this chapter I loved…and some parts…not so much. I leave you to decide how you feel about this chapter. Really had no time to edit. Just wanted to get this out to you guys.

I'd like to thank you guys SO MUCH! I'M OVER 400 REVIEWS! YOU GUYS ARE AMAZING!

REALLY HOPE YOU ENJOYED THIS CHAPTER! PLEASE REVIEW! :)

BTW: ONLY ONE CHAPTER LEFT! :)