Hey guys. Not sure how many of you saw, but I put up an author's note on what was supposed to be the tenth chapter of Heart Stopping Comeback, saying that I was going to be rewriting the whole story. This is the first chapter. It's quite... different from what I had initially written. My goal is to make it better, so hopefully I did a good job. Hope you enjoy.

He didn't know how it happened. One minute, he was making his way towards the pool to relax. The next, he was frozen on the spot, right in the middle of the lobby, because of the sight that had met him once he had exited the elevator. It was a sight that caused his heartbeat to quicken, and his mind to be sent into overdrive. A flurry of emotions took over him, but the one that stood out the most of all to him, was fear. Fear because his father, Kenneth Knight, was standing right in front of Bitters' desk, when he should have been locked up in jail. Fear because the one person who had the power to make him absolutely vulnerable and terrified, was standing just a few meters away from him.

Everything seemed to come to a stop in that moment. He was left paralyzed; feet glued to the carpeted floor. It wasn't until his father turned in his direction—two pairs of green eyes meeting—that his mind finally seemed to communicate with his body. He fled from the lobby in a rush, not even bothering to wait for an elevator. Instead, he took the stairs two at a time, fear coursing through his entire body. All he wanted was to get to his apartment and never see that monster again, but he knew that the chances of that happening were very unlikely.

He didn't know what his father was doing at the Palm Woods, but having known him, he knew that whatever it was, it wasn't good. It wasn't good at all.

"Hey, Kendall, what are you—"

Kendall crashed into James almost as soon as he arrived at his sanctuary. Both boys went falling to the floor in a heap; the blond on top of the brunette. James gently pushed him off of him, gripping him by his shoulders as he took in the state the younger boy was in. He was shaking uncontrollably, tears swimming in his eyes.

"Kendall? Ken, what's the matter?"

Kendall opened his mouth to respond, but no words came out. He didn't get the chance to calm down and tell James what had happened, since just seconds later, a loud knock echoed through the living room. The shorter boy pushed James away and ran to his room, slamming the door shut behind him.

Confused and worried, James got up and made his way to the front door, figuring he might as well see who had arrived. He would find out what was wrong with Kendall as soon as he got the chance. But what he wasn't expecting, was to be met with a man who looked like the older version of Kendall, once he had opened the door.

"Hello," the older male said, extending his arm forward, as if expecting for James to shake his hand. James gave him a confused look, hesitantly shaking his hand. In the back of his mind, he had this thought that it was Kendall's dad who was standing before him. The thing was, that after everything he had put Kendall through, Kenneth should not have been released from jail yet—he should have been rotting in a cell for all the pain he had put him through. After all, that is what he deserved.

"Is Kendall Knight here? I need to speak with him."

"Who are you?" James questioned, needing to know if he was right. If he was really Kendall's father, there was no way he would allow him anywhere near him. Then it hit him—he must have been the reason the dirty blond was so scared just minutes before.

"I'm Kenneth, Kendall's—"

"Don't even say it."

Two heads turned around as Carlos' voice interrupted Kenneth in mid-sentence. The shorter boy was standing in the middle of the living room, frown upon his face. He made his way to stand besides James and glared at the taller man standing in front of them.

"You are not and will never be Kendall's father. You had your chance, but you lost it. You're not welcome here."

"You really think someone like you is going to tell me what to do?" Before either of the two boys could react, Kenneth had pushed Carlos back, which made James mad.

"Who the hell do you think you are?! You can't just come in here and demand to see Kendall like this. Like Carlos clearly stated, you're no longer a father figure to him. You lost that title when you laid a hand on him. Now, get out." He was seeing red. Now that he knew for sure that it was Kendall's father who they were dealing with, he would not allow him to be anywhere near Kendall—not if he could help it. He had hurt Kendall, both physically and mentally; scarred him for life. What kind of father did that to their own child?

Kenneth sent a glare in his direction, before opening his mouth to speak once more. "This is not the last you'll see of me," he warned as he turned around and left, leaving both James and Carlos confused and afraid of what he would do.

Carlos turned to James, fear clear in his eyes. "We can't let him go anywhere near Kendall," he said, to which James shook his head.

"No... we cannot."

Meanwhile:

Kendall ran to his room, tripping over his own feet on the way there. He didn't wait for James to open the door, fearing what would be on the other side. Instead, he shut his bedroom door behind him and let his back slide against the hard wood, trying his best to catch his breath and keep himself calm.

"Dude, are you alright?"

Logan's voice caused the dirty blond to jump, not expecting him to be there. He turned to the shorter brunette with a fearful expression and shook his head from side to side.

"I'm..." Again, no words came out. He pulled his knees to his chest and watched as Logan got up from where he was sitting on his bed, and walked towards him.

"Hey," Logan kneeled down in front of Kendall, laying a hand on his shoulder, "what's wrong? Did something happen?" He grew worried for the taller boy, not being used to seeing him so scared and upset.

"H-He... He's b-back," Kendall stuttered as tears started to roll down his face. "I can't do this again... I can't."

"Who's back?" Logan asked, clearly confused. He could hear the muffled sound of voices coming from outside the bedroom, but he paid no attention to them. His main priority in that moment was Kendall, and seeing what it was that had him so upset.

"My d-d-dad," Kendall whispered. The tremors that shook his body only seemed to intensify as each second passed by.

"But... he can't be. Your dad is in jail. Where would you get an idea like that one?" the brunette asked cautiously, frowning not only at the news, but also because Kendall looked absolutely terrified.

"I saw him in the lobby... And someone just knocked on the door, that's why I came running in here... I'm sure it's him... He s-saw me." The tears started to roll down Kendall's cheeks at a faster pace. Not knowing what to do, Logan pulled him into a hug and started to rub circles against the boy's quivering back, attempting to calm him down.

"It's gonna be okay. If it is him who's here, James and Carlos won't let him come anywhere near you, and neither will I. You're safe, alright?" He tangled his fingers in Kendall's blond locks, feeling the younger boy cling to him as he sobbed into his chest.

"I'm s-so scared," Kendall admitted, his face still buried against Logan's t-shirt. "H-He's not supposed to be here..."

"No, he's not, and we'll find a way to get him out of here. But, for now, trust me when I say you're safe. He's not going to hurt you again, I promise you that."

The voices coming from outside the bedroom rose in volume. Logan frowned, wanting to know what it was that was happening out there. It wasn't long before the yelling stopped and someone knocked on their door. Kendall clung to Logan even more so, afraid of who would be standing there.

"Guys, it's me," James said from the other side. "Can I come in?"

"Yeah, wait up." Logan helped Kendall to move out of the way, then told James he could come in. The taller brunette cautiously opened the door and walked inside, followed closely behind by Carlos. The two boys took in the sight in front of them and their hearts broke.

Carlos was the first one to kneel down and take Kendall's face in between his hands. "Hey," he whispered, wiping away the tears rolling down the boy's face. "Ken, listen to me, he's gone."

"F-For now."

"He's not going to come anywhere near you. We won't let him."

"Carlos is right, Kendall," James said, taking a seat beside the little Latino. "He'll have to walk over our dead bodies in order to get to you."

"I-I know... I'm just so scared," he said in a low whisper, wishing this would all just be a horrible nightmare. And it was a nightmare, but this nightmare was real. There was no getting out. He couldn't just wake up and escape it, like he wished he could.

"It's gonna be okay." James pulled both Kendall and Logan into a hug, resting his chin on top of Kendall's head. "Everything's gonna be alright."

Kendall didn't respond, but rather closed his eyes, feeling Carlos join in on the hug as well. There were no words to explain how emotionally exhausted he was in that moment. All he wanted was to forget and leave his father behind, but it seemed like the odds were against him.

I hope you're right, he thought, as he was engulfed by words of comfort and by exhaustion, all at once.

What did you all think? Did you like it? Hate it? Hope you guys liked it. Thanks for reading.

~ BigTimeRush-BTR :)