okay... so this chapter was sort of hard to write... but then I went back, changed everything and it came easier! I'm weird like that... heh... Well, enjoy!

"Hey!" Logan exclaimed, stumbling along behind Carlos and Kendall as James pushed them ahead forcefully against their will. Kendall glanced back at the confused girl who, after a while of staring and probably thinking that Big Time Rush was made up by weirdo's that left pretty girls standing in the middle of a hotel lobby, only shrugged and sat back down, opening her book up again and giving it her complete and undivided attention.

James sighed in annoyance as he let go of Kendall and Logan's shirts and stared at them. "You guys are unbelievable!" he threw his hands up in the air dramatically. "You just had to interrupt us just when the conversation was moving along."

Kendall snorted. "'Getting along'? You mean when she lost all interest in what you were saying and pulled Carlos into the conversation?"

Ignoring the urge to glare at the Latino standing off to the side, the pretty-boy rolled his eyes. "I had a plan!"

"And what was that?" Logan raised his eyebrows. "Snatching that book out of her hand and flinging it into the pool? Or maybe lifting your shirt and trying to win her over with your 'washboard abs'." he laughed as he held his hands up in air quotations. "Face it, James. She's obviously not interested."

James let out one of his famous yelps and grabbed at his hair, clearly offended. "'Not interested'? Not interested! Of course she's interested!" wiggling his fingers in front of his face; he tried to show off his white teeth. "Have you not seen this face?"

The two boys rolled their eyes and sighed at his failure of a modest response.

Haydelynn didn't hear them, no matter how loud their conversation was getting. Instead, she was completely immersed in the book in her hands.

"Whatcha reading?" she looked up at the sound of a voice to be met by Carlos once again, and she offered a small smile, tired of getting interrupted. That and, well no one knew of the book in her hands, or what it meant to her, so she gently placed it beside her and directed her attention to the curious Latino.

"Nothing…" her shoulders lifted in a shrug, and she let out a sigh, her eyes falling once again on the helmet. "May I ask what the helmet's for?" she reached out and tugged on a lose strap, making a grin break out on Carlos' face.

"Protection," he answered simply, mimicking her shrug.

Her eyebrows rose. "No kidding."

"I'm serious," he chuckled. "It's just in case I walk into a wall and end up doing a head spin on the ground… or a rock gets thrown at my head."

"Aren't you prepared?" she rolled her eyes, and he laughed before nodding. Both of them then looked over to where his friends were standing, and she grinned when she caught James' stare, making the pretty boy wink before looking away.

Noticing the exchange, Carlos' smile wavered.

"So…" he said loudly, causing her to turn back to him. "What are you here for?"

She cleared her throat and ran a hand through her hair. "Um… my mom's the new assistant manager?" it was phrased more of a question than a statement.

He held back a laugh. "Really?"

She nodded and smacked him in the chest when she saw his smirk. "What's so funny?" her tone was defensive and embarrassed.

He barked a laugh. "Nothing, I just expected you to be a singer or something…" Maybe a model. She threw a smile his way and his stomach tightened. Yeah, she can totally be a model.

"Well, I'm not," she said simply, and something about the way she said it made him think she was lying somehow.

She hated ending conversations, but she just couldn't keep talking about music… especially not in a place like the Palm Woods. So, standing up, she grabbed her book and smiled. "Well, my mom's probably wondering where I am… so…"

Carlos jumped up beside her. "Oh! Yeah, of course." He couldn't help but wonder why she had suddenly become so edgy, her fingers fidgeting with her jacket string.

"So, I'm just gonna…" she started to make her way around him, her fingers tightening around the jacket string and tugging anxiously.

"Hey, um," she turned around when he started talking again, a guilty feeling making its way to her stomach. "You wanna hang out sometime? Maybe by the pool or something?"

A soft blush crept to her cheeks, and he noticed she was softly shaking her head. "Actually…"

"With all of us, I mean," he threw in, his words escaping his lips without thinking. "I mean… the guys really seem to like you… and since you're new here we could… ya know," his shoulders lifted and dropped. "Show you around and stuff." He couldn't get his hopes up now, considering the fact that it was her first day here and that he just met her, so asking her out was completely out of the question.

But inviting her to a group outing and being the only one showing up was a totally different story…

She seemed to ponder over that for a moment before sighing and shrugging. "Why not? It's not like I have anything better to do." She did actually, like unpacking her belongings and thinking of a way to get her mom to move back to Florida, but she felt bad ditching him and rejecting his sweet offer in the same ten minutes, so she accepted.

He flashed a million-watt smile and nodded. "Okay, so I'll meet you by the pool tomorrow morning?"

"Tell me when."

"Around nine?"

She shrugged and he grinned.

She stared at the words on the page, scribbled in such beautiful, neat handwriting. Her fingers gently traced the soft cursive, forming the words that she had read thousands of times but just couldn't get enough of.

Snow is a mysterious thing. The words read, and she closed her eyes and tried to imagine a white blanket of snow over the ground. At least, I think it is. When it falls, it's not cold, but then you feel the atmosphere around you cooling down until your bones are shaking and all you want is to go inside to have some hot chocolate. But then you immerse yourself in it and play with it and it becomes the coolest thing. She tried to use the description and remember what it was like to play in snow, but the memories were fuzzy, considering she hadn't seen it since she was about two or three years old.

Have you ever seen snow, Haydy? The words kept on, using the nickname that she hadn't heard in years. It's pretty cool if you ask me… that is, until it gets all yellow and stuff and the cold isn't as comforting as it was before. She always smiled at that part, her lips coming up to form the smallest of smiles. John got us lost in the woods today… again. It was my job to find our way back. I honestly think I can be on that cool reality TV show where they throw a bunch of overdramatic teenagers in the middle of the woods and they have to find their way back. Amy was freaking out the entire day, which was really annoying! I mean, doesn't anyone understand that in order for you to listen for the road you have to be QUIET? But all I could hear were her loud annoying whimpers. "Sophie the sun's going down" or "Sophie I'm out of bug spray" or "Sophie! I scratched myself on a twig! I'm gonna die!" Gosh, I felt like taping her mouth shut, but sadly, John had forgotten his duct tape.

"What are you doing?" she jumped, a small gasp escaping her lips as her hands snap her book shut and quickly tuck it under her thigh. Looking up, she came face to chubby face of the weird hotel manager, who was staring at her with his bushy eyebrows raised high over his glasses.

She gave him a pure innocent look, shrinking back into the pillows of the couch she was seated on. "Um… reading?"

A long pointer was pulled out of nowhere, and she flinched when it was slammed against a random whiteboard behind her that she never noticed. "No lounging in the lobby after nine!"

Raising an eyebrow, she looked down at her watch. "It's only 9:01…"

"Exactly! One minute past the limited time! Which means, that I'm going to have to put a stri—"

"Haydelynn!" he was cut off when someone else boomed her name from across the lobby, and she looked up to see James hurrying over towards her and Mr. Bitters, a sweet smile on his face. "There you are!"

Bitters seemed bewildered as he watched the sandy haired boy grab Haydelynn's hand and pull her into a bone-crushing hug, which she didn't fully return, instead gasping for breath as her face was pressed into the hardness of his chest. After finally letting her go, he turned to Mr. Bitters with a pleading look. "Come on, Mr. Bitters," he patted the fat man's shoulder gently, his other arm coming around to drape across Haydelynn's shoulders. "My dear friend Haydelynn was only innocently reading in the lovely lobby of the Palm Woods." his tone was persuasive and over-kind. "I find no need to give her a strike."

"A strike?" Haydelynn repeated, trying to shake James' arm off, but he held it tight. Her eyes floated up to James' face, confusion clouding the green irises. "What are you—"

"The rules specifically say—" Mr. Bitters started, but James interrupted him once again.

"And, she's new! You can't possibly expect her to know all the rules on her first day, now can you?"

Haydelynn had no idea what was going on, she had no idea what a "strike" was, or why Bitters was insisting on giving her one… but what she was completely stumped about was why James was making it his job to cover up for her, like if getting a strike was the worst thing in the world.

Mr. Bitters' face softened as he thoughtfully stuffed a handful of popcorn in his mouth. "Fine," he grumbled, throwing a glare over at the puzzled girl standing before him. "But if I find you in this lobby after nine ever again…"

"Alright, thanks Mr. Bitters! Now, Haydy's late for dinner, so if you'll excuse us…" before the manager could answer, James was already leading Haydelynn away, his act falling as he gently pushed her into the elevator, pressing the button to the second floor.

The doors slid closed slowly, leaving the two teenagers alone in the elevator.

Haydelynn didn't say anything; she was too busy trying to process what had just happened. Not really the events, even though she did wonder what a strike was and why James had insisted on being her "hero", but there was that last sentence that kept repeating itself in her head.

"Haydy's late for dinner…"

Haydy. He had called her Haydy, a name that she hadn't heard in years, let alone answered to. No one called her that, no matter how long her name was. She had always said that her name was unshortenable… if that was even a word. She hated being called Lynn, and though she would answer to Hayden, she didn't really enjoy it either.

Only one person had ever called her Haydy, someone that she loved dearly, and what always surprised her is that she would answer, not caring how ridiculous and childish the nickname sounded.

And here stood this arrogant pop star that she had just met, and it seemed completely natural to shorten her unusual name.

The elevators dinged and opened, revealing the second floor of the Palm Woods. James stepped aside, holding his arm against the side in case the door would want to close. After a second, she took a couple of steps forward into the hall, waiting for his lead.

"This isn't my floor," she stated obviously as she watched him climb out of the elevator.

He rose and eyebrow and chuckled. "No, it's mine."

"Well, then why am I here?"

Another laugh escaped his lips as he led her towards apartment 2J, his hand rested gently against the small of her back. He didn't answer her question, and she had to admit, it kind of annoyed her.

They kept walking down the hallway, passing one, two, three doors and on and on, until she sighed in impatience.

"You know," he broke the silence, looking down at her as they came to a stop in front of a door, where two X's with Bitters face on them were stuck on it. "A 'thank you' wouldn't go unappreciated."

She raised her eyebrows at him, crossing her arms. "I still don't know what the hell you did to make me thank you…"

His hand came up to point at the X's on the door. "Those are strikes," he informed her. "Given by Bitters to those guests who break the rules. Three strikes—"

"And you're out." She finished for him, her lips coming up at the side.

He nodded. "Exactly, you were just about to get one. On your first day here." He shook his head almost shamefully. "That would have been horrible. Worse than us."

"So, you saved me from getting my first strike?"

"Yep," he shrugged. "I mean, at least get a strike on something worth getting a strike for. Not reading in the lobby after nine… I mean, come on."

A snicker escaped her and she shook her head. "Alright fine," playfully nudging him in the shoulder (or in the arm, considering her head just barely reached his shoulder), she rolled her eyes. "Thank you."

A smug smile spread on his face. "No problem."

Just then, the door was yanked open and both teenagers turned to see Kendall standing there with an appalled expression. "Uh, James?" he raised an eyebrow at his tall friend before turning to the girl. "And Hayden!"

"Haydelynn," she corrected him with a smile, waving awkwardly. "Hi."

"Hey," the blonde answered with a smirk, looking back up at his friend. "What are you…" he trailed off, leaving the empty space in his sentence for James to finish.

"James just saved me, apparently." Haydelynn answered when they sandy haired boy didn't.

Inside the apartment, Carlos' head shot up at the familiar sound of her voice, and both he and Logan peered over the dining table trying to get a better look at the door. The Latino's dark eyes narrowed the slightest bit when he saw the closeness of their bodies, James' hand still pressed against the small of her back, waiting to gently push her in when needed. She didn't seem to notice though, like it was perfectly natural.

Kendall looked down at her (why were these guys so tall?) and chuckled. "Did he?"

She shrugged. "Apparently, I have to save my strikes for something worth getting in trouble for."

Kendall looked at James, who only grinned and mimicked her shrug, taking a step closer to the door. Realizing that both of them were still out in the hall, the blonde stepped aside, smiling. "Well, come on in."

James strode in casually, plopping himself down at the dining table beside Carlos (who let out a heavy sigh before reaching for the ketchup bottle), grabbing a handful of French fries and tossing them on his plate before grabbing a hamburger. Haydelynn stood under the door frame awkwardly, debating whether she should go to her apartment or not.

Then… the arguments started.

"Dude, I had it first!" Carlos' voice drifted to her ears, and she slightly leaned in to get a better view him and Logan both holding on to either end of the ketchup bottle, yelling at each other as they each tugged violently.

"Yeah, right after you snatched it away from me mid-squirt!"

"Well I wouldn't have to snatch it if you didn't take it from me!"

She quietly watched them go, an amused smile spreading on her lips.

"Are you gonna come in?" Kendall asked her.

She bit her lip for a second before shaking her head. "Actually, I think I should be heading over to my own apartment." Taking a step back, she smiled politely at him.

"Oh come on," he rolled his eyes. "The food's done, and we have plenty."

"Yeah, but my mom…"

Just then, her phone vibrated, and she pulled it out of her back pocket, opening up her new text message.

Hey honey, I'm working late tonight apparently, job's harder than I thought. But I heard the room service is awesome. Order anything you want. I'm sorry. Love you, Mom.

"Well that's convenient." She muttered under her breath, replying quickly before tucking her phone into her back pocket and looking back up at Kendall.

"You were saying?" he had a smug look on his face, and she rolled her eyes, as if this was totally natural and they had known each other forever.

"Well," she sighed, looking over his shoulder at the bickering Carlos and Logan, the attractive James munching away at his burger, and then looked at the insisting blonde who looked nothing but friendly, and shrugged. "I guess a couple of hamburgers wouldn't hurt."

And just like that, she slid in beside Kendall, and entered the crazy world that surrounded these boys' lives.

"How can you not like onion rings?"

"It's, like, impossible."

A couple of hours later, after being convinced to play dome hockey (which she won... if you count James practically playing for her winning), slide down the bright yellow swirly slide (in which she had embarrassingly fallen on top of Logan), and eat cup after cup of chocolate pudding (which she couldn't keep eating after two cups),Haydelynn found herself sitting crossed legged on a bright orange couch, a pillow wedged between her legs and the four members of Big Time Rush surrounding her with shocked faces. She had to admit, these guys were amazing. Nothing like she had ever seen before. They were all different in their own way, and yet they seemed to completely flow together perfectly, like words in a song.

"They just never appealed to me," she shrugged, laughing as they stared at her like she was from some alien planet.

Carlos, who was the closest to her, clamped his hands down on her shoulders and shook her lightly. "Look me in the eye and repeat that!"

She widened her eyes considerably, obviously teasing him as she nodded and slowly said, "Me. No. Like. Onion. Rings."

The other three boys broke out laughing while Carlos only rolled his eyes and leaned back into the pillows, even as his usual childlike smile spread out on his face. Haydelynn giggled and patted his leg in teasing sympathy.

"Boys…" the laughing ceased as a redheaded woman appeared, her eyebrows raising when she caught sight of the girl seated comfortably on her couch. "Oh, who's this?"

Haydelynn hopped up, quickly arranging the pillows back how they should have been on the couch. James stood up next, giving a nervous chuckle as he pretended to help her, followed by the rest of them. Kendall faced his mom with one of his "I-am-so-improvising-right-now" looks. "Mom, this is our new friend, Haydelynn," he gestured towards the girl that was now standing awkwardly between Logan and Carlos.

"Hi," she decided to politely hold her hand out, since that was what she had been taught as a child.

With a raise of an eyebrow, Mrs. Knight smiled and shook her hand. "Hello, and welcome to the Palm Woods, I guess." She laughed, pulling her hand back to hang by her side. "What are you here for?"

Haydelynn swallowed. Did everyone have to ask that question?

"Her mom's the new assistant manager." Logan answered for her before Haydelynn could even open her mouth.

Mrs. Knight's eyebrows went up—way up—and her eyes widened in empathy. "Really? Poor woman…"

Haydelynn didn't even know how to respond to that, so she didn't.

Instead, her eyes widened and followed as a small girl stepped out into the living room, making her way over to stand next to her mom, looking up at Haydelynn with a bored look. A sigh escaped her lips as she crossed her arms and jutted her hip out, her auburn hair falling over her shoulder as she cocked her head to the side. "Alright, who's the girl and who called dibs first?"

A groan spread out among the guys. "Katie!" they all hissed, and Carlos glanced at Haydelynn before blushing slightly and reaching up to rub the back of his neck.

Haydelynn only looked at her, trying to figure out what she was doing and how she fit into the scene.

"Uh, Haydelynn… meet Katie," Kendall muttered, gesturing with his hands. "My baby sister."

"Who called dibs?" was all Katie repeated, a smirk spreading as she gave Haydelynn the once over for about the eighth time since walking in. Haydelynn couldn't help but let the smile pull her lips upward when no one answered, but instead hung their heads.

"James," she answered for them, the smirk becoming more evident, mirroring Katie's. "James called dibs, very loudly at that."

Katie snorted and shook her head as the four boys shot up to gape at Haydelynn, a bright crimson coloring each of their cheeks, James' sporting the brightest of them all.

"I told you she heard!" Logan whispered, almost oblivious to the fact that he had to lean over Haydelynn to hiss at his friends.

"This isn't awkward," Kendall sneered sarcastically.

"It's only awkward if you make it awkward," Haydelynn jumped in, shrugging. "I mean, you guys were standing not even a yard away from me when James' called—or screamed—dibs."

A groan escaped James and his face scrunched up, much to everyone's amusement.

"Looks like the slick one wasn't so slick after all…"

Katie snickered at this, and the two girls looked at each other before sharing a quick fist-bump. "I like her," Katie said, pointing at the boys before walking off.

"You guys didn't really have to walk me to my room, ya know, it's not like I'm gonna get kidnapped between floors."

They were all standing in front of her apartment door now—5F, to be exact—Haydelynn's hand resting gently on the doorknob.

Carlos shrugged, crossing his arms as he leant against the wall, his head turning slightly as he studied her. "This is L.A…"

"So you never know." Logan finished for him, sporting his cute crooked smile.

Haydelynn rolled her eyes as she dug her keys out of her pocket, sticking it into the lock. "Well, thanks anyway," she paused before turning the knob. "For everything, I mean. Dinner and stuff, it made me feel really…" she searched for the right word and smiled at her outcome. "Welcome."

"Well, that's what we do!" Carlos chuckled.

"Although you were easy enough to get along with," Logan said. "Definitely not like anyone else we met when we came." She heard some kind of double meaning in those words, but decided it was too late to look too much into it.

"Well," she smiled. "It's late, and I bet my mom's back already." Gently turning the knob, she eased the door open, turning to the two boys that insisted on walking her to her apartment, Kendall staying to help his mom with the dishes and James too embarrassed about Katie's remarks for any smart flirtations.

Logan nodded, and took a step back. "I hope you have fun," he said with a smile. "And that Katie didn't freak you out too much."

She laughed. "Naw, she's cool. Though, I feel kinda bad for James now."

"Don't," Carlos said, a bit too stern and defensive, so he tried to laugh it off. "He's just not used to be caught in a mistake, that's all." He grinned, though it wasn't as bright as it was before.

Logan's eyebrow quirked, and both him and Haydelynn shared a look.

After a few more exchanges and looks and words, Logan and Carlos started down the hallway towards the elevator and Haydelynn was able to step into her new home, which she realized as she quietly walked to her room and laid in bed, was already starting to feel more like home to her.

She didn't doubt four certain boys had something to do with it.

So, you know what to do to make me update sooner! Reviews give me inspiration and motivation to update! SO INSPIRE AND MOTIVATE ME!... please?

Oh, and those of you waiting for your requested one shots, I know it's been taking forever... but please just bear with me... im sorry I'm taking so long, but I'm trying.. .and I havent given up on any of them... so just hold on a bit longer... :)

Review?