A huge thank you and hug for the people that reviewed the last chapter. Lots of love for CarganFever, taeXen, brittney, nigel small, ThisHendersonChick14, WeLoveTheLove, rosebud, Hikari no Kasai, cococolakid and of course, MoonbabyAstroRock3r.
For the alerts and favourites, I thank you so much!
Ooo. Also, a big thanks to Miss-Invisible-Heartbreak. You reviewed #7 just as I updated #8. Haha. So, you can get your shout-out here. Love for Tawnee!
So, I wanna dedicate this chapter to a special, sweet friend I've made recently. ThisHendersonChick14, this one is for you and your sweetness, lots of love Shay, hope it's good enough for you!
Behind The Lens
Chapter Nine; Another Party, Another Day.
Logan nervously waited at the oak door, the nerves building up inside of him. These were his friends, so you'd think he wouldn't be nervous. Only problem was, having your best friends make out, possible even dating, underneath your nose kind of puts that awkwardness into perspective. Logan continued to skip from step to step as the door slowly opened, Drew appearing, a tint of red colouring his normally tanned cheeks.
"H-Hi Logan," Drew stammered. "What's up?"
Logan didn't reply. Within seconds, his throat had dried up. He couldn't put together a word, let alone a proper sentence. Logan simply stared at Drew, watching the slightly taller boy stare back uncomfortably, clearing wanting to avoid the awkwardness that was obviously going to happen.
"Hi." Logan managed to reply.
Without responding, Drew stepped aside, Logan stepping into the large house. Quickly, Logan felt a sense of relief. Why? Well, he couldn't explain it. He couldn't lie to himself. When he saw Drew and Sabrina kiss, even for that second, his heart tightened. But not through jealously, but through sadness. He didn't have that many people in his life, Sabrina and Drew being the only ones that could keep Logan together. Seeing them together, just made the model feel like a third wheel, as if sooner or later the pair will push him out, to be together some more.
Logan moved to the front room, noticing Sabrina sat on the couch, repeatedly flicking her hair past her ear, only for it to fall back again.
"Sabby, stop it," Logan lightly laughed. "You will make it fall out."
Sabrina turned to face him, relief washing over her face. "You don't hate me then?"
Drew appeared behind Logan, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Of course, you guys are my friends.. If you're happy, I'm happy."
Sabrina quickly threw herself off of the couch, arms wide open and launching herself in the direction of the boys. Before either could react, they were being enclosed in her arms, the trio laughing together.
"So what's up man, why you here?" Drew asked Logan.
The three made their way to the couch, Drew and Sabrina taking a seat either side of Logan, the model in the middle with his head hung low.
"I can't go home," Logan said with a croaky voice. "I'm so happy and yet, so sad."
Sabrina's eyebrows knitted together as her arm snaked it's way around his shoulders, holding him. "What's up Logie?"
A deep sigh escaped Logan's mouth, Drew now placing his hand on Logan's knee. "Mom slapped me and I kissed Carlos, simply really, well, you would think.." Logan said rather conflicted.
Without letting him finish, Sabrina pushed herself up onto her feet, fists clenched. "I'll get payback for you. I'm a girl, I can hit her, surely?"
"She already hates you." Logan replied bluntly.
A small, over-dramatic gasp left Sabrina's lips. "And I care why?"
Logan lightly chuckled. Sabrina was always the comic relief of the group, which only made it more amusing the fact that Johanna hated Sabrina with a passion. Sure, she stereotyped Sabrina in being the party girl who gets drunk, which is all true, but she was more than that. Just like Logan was more than a pretty face prepared to pose constantly. Of course though, Johanna was narrow-minded. She was a plastic, older version of a Barbie doll, complete with the false lips and overly done botox. Yes, another one of Johanna's perks. Whilst Logan would make all the money, Johanna kept a tight grip on the dollars, making sure Logan would not go overboard. Of course, Johanna was more than willing to spend some money on herself, improving her day to day needs and life.
"True," Logan said. "But now.. I can't face her. Guys, I can't take it."
"What do you mean? I'm sure you guys will make up." Drew comforted Logan, rubbing his hand in a circle on Logan's knee.
"I don't mean that, I mean everything else, all of this!" Logan shouted, his voice raising.
Surprised, Drew flinched back a little, Sabrina still stood up. Logan just stared blanklessly into thin air. When he came over, he was happy due to a certain adorable Latino and an upcoming party to be held by James. Problem was, when his 2 friends were around, he couldn't control himself. His emotions literally become so thick like blood, they aren't as easy to stop as the tears. Although, this only happens when either Drew or Sabrina are with him. Both? Well, that pushes him over the edge.
"I don't want this life, any of it. I want to be able to walk down the street without being bombarded with fans, I want to able to walk in a shop without bodyguards behind me, I want to be able to kiss Carlos without the fear of it being on a magazine, I want to be free.." Logan gasped for air, his head collapsing into his shaking hands as he moaned.
Drew looked over at Sabrina, only gaining a shrug and a frown in response. "Logan.." Drew cooed.
Sabrina then took her seat, running her thin fingers through Logan's hair, knowing that he liked it when his hair was played with, all in the attempts in calming him down. Finally, Logan lifted his head out, a small twinkle in his eye. In his mind, Logan could only think of Carlos and how his lips felt. How soft they were, so perfect against his own.
"Logan, you have Carlos now," Sabrina said quietly. "Screw your mom. Fire her or something."
Another small chuckle escaped Logan's lips. "Did you guys hear about James' get-together?"
Sabrina and Drew both passed confused looks, Sabrina even knitting her plucked eyebrows. She leant across to the table, scooping up her phone and checking out the texts. After focusing on her phone for a while, she brought herself back to the boys.
"So we did. Yeah sure, I'm up for it," Sabrina smiled. "But, he best have alcohol."
Drew slightly laughed. "Don't you think you should go cold turkey on the stuff?"
"You're talking stupid." Sabrina glared.
"So come on then," Logan said more cheerful, slapping his hands down on each of their knees. "When did it happen, I mean, you guys?"
"After the bar, when I was drunk." Sabrina confessed.
Logan passed a satisfied look between the pair, noticing that in fact, they weren't even looking at Logan. They were too busy looking at each other. For a moment, Logan felt that horrible twinge in his stomach, the thought of him being pushed aside flooding back, but after that passed, stupidity took over. How did he not see it? He was genius, yet, he couldn't see his friends longing for each other. That explains why Drew never got a girlfriend. Explains why Sabrina never had any other guy friends except her trusted closeted gay.
Kendall pulled Carlos down the hall, heading to Lucy's apartment.
"Kendall, I can walk myself!" Carlos complained, his wrist caught in Kendall's grip.
"You won't have the balls to do!" Kendall retorted.
Kendall stopped outside Lucy's door, letting go of Carlos finally. With a strong hand, Kendall lightly pounded the door. After a moment of silence and Carlos complaining, it opens, Lucy appearing in the doorway.
"Sup guys?" Lucy said through a yawn.
"Lucy," Kendall replied, pushing Carlos in front. "Carlos has a new boyfriend!"
Instantly, Carlos' eyes turn to glare at Kendall, noticing the dirty blonde is rather happy with himself. Slowly, he moves his gaze back to Lucy, the one girl that can get anything out of him. Literally, anything. Lucy moved forward slightly, a glimmer in her eyes as her lips purse together.
"Awh, our baby is all grown up!" Lucy teased, scruffing up Carlos' neat black hair.
Carlos quickly swiped the hand away, letting out a huff in annoyance as he turns to face Kendall, punching the taller boy in the arm. Kendall lets out a small moan. Carlos might have been smaller, but he knew how to send a punch, something he wished he done to Henry after that one night, something Kendall kept encouraging him to do constantly.
"So, whatcha want?" Lucy asked.
"Well," Carlos said. "There's this party, at this guy's house and my, err..-"
"Boyfriend!" Kendall chipped in.
"He's not my boyfriend, we aren't official." Carlos glared, turning to face the dirty blonde.
"Logan's gonna be there otherwords, yeah?" Lucy questioned.
"Yeah." Carlos nodded.
"Who's house?" Lucy asked once more.
"This guy called James. Not many people, just us lot and Logan's friends." Kendall interjected.
"Sure," Lucy smiled. "If there's a party, you know I'm in."
"What about work?" Carlos asked as Lucy stepped out the apartment, closing the door behind her and locking it.
"Meh," Lucy shrugged. "I'll call sick or something."
Kendall and Carlos smiled, walking back to Carlos' apartment so the Latino could get dressed up. Kendall kept telling him that it was a date with Logan, but to Carlos, this didn't count. This was a get-together, not a date. He loved romance, so to him, a date would be dinner or picnic on the beach. Possibly even a movie or walk through the park. Not a place where a small group of people mingled, especially since Carlos had this gut-wrenching feeling that he couldn't be open, incase Logan hadn't told anyone about him being gay.
Logan straightened out his clothes in front of the mirror, making sure he looked great. The evening was drawing close, which meant James' little party was going to happen soon. After texting the address and details to Carlos, he slid his phone in his pocket after deleting the array of texts from Johanna complaining, grinning at the reflection in the mirror.
Come on Logan, you can do this. No getting nervous now, you've practically signed yourself away with that kiss.
A small knock on the door brought Logan out of his dreamworld. He quickly opened it, noticing Drew and Sabrina dressed. Not over the top, like they would normally have to for one of Mercedes' parties, just casual clothes.
Something, which of course, Logan didn't have. So, to make things better, Sabrina decided to alter the clothes quickly, making Logan look the slightest bit normal. After that was done, all 3 climbed into Drew's car, sliding out of the driveway and into the streets of California.
"So Logan," Sabrina said. "You are Carlos together now, yeah?"
Logan let out an awkward cough. "We're not official yet.. W-We're taking it slow, this being my first relationship an' all.."
"Awh, you so damn cute!" Sabrina cooed teasingly.
"Yeah, well what about you guys, you official?" Logan bit back.
Instantly, Sabrina went quiet a she shifted her glance towards Drew, who only looked back just as awkwardly. Then, Sabrina gave a faint nod, confirming Logan's suspicions.
The rest of the drive was relatively quiet, a small hum from the radio soothing the background so there would be no silence. Drew and Sabrina kept passing flirtatious giggles to each other, even going so far as to have a quick kiss mid-driving. Logan, sat in the back, could help but smile. He was happy they were happy. That, and now he had Carlos, so things were working out. The only downside was, could he and Carlos keep up this romance without people finding out? If they did, Logan can kiss his career goodbye. Although it was a tempting idea, Logan couldn't just throw it all away. Not yet, anyway. He needed to think things through before moving forward with any plan.
Finally, the car pulled up outside the large house, an unfamiliar parked up already. As they got closer, Logan noticed the car had Kendall, Carlos and a girl inside. Instantly, that butterfly feeling grew inside Logan, the feeling of being so close to Carlos overwhelming. The problem was, James didn't know he was gay. So for now, Carlos and Logan's little romance would have to be hidden, at least for the night.
Drew stopped the car, the three climbing out. As they did, the passenger's in the other car also got out. Without a second thought, Logan's eyes glanced at Carlos, who of course, was already staring at Logan. The familiar prickly heat climbed up Logan's neck, tinting his cheeks a slight red as he moved his eyes away, knowing Carlos enjoyed making him blush like mad. Sabrina and Drew instantly walked over, introducing themselves to Kendall, whilst Carlos and the girl walked over to Logan.
"Hey Logan, this is my friend, Lucy." Carlos grinned.
"Nice to meet you." Logan politely smiled.
"Likewise," Lucy replied, a sinister smirk on her face. "Oh, I've heard a LOT about you Mr Mitchell.."
Logan's eyes bulged at her words as Carlos nudged her in the side. "W-W-Whatcha mean?" Logan stammered.
Carlos leant forward, putting himself into the conversation. "Well, since Kendall knew, I thought I'd tell Lucy as well, if that's okay.."
Logan nodded, glancing back to Lucy, who by now, was smiling and awh'ing at the two boys in front of her.
"Lucy, we're not dating." Carlos said flatly.
"I know," Lucy defended herself. "I just think it's too damn adorable, that's all."
Logan and Carlos let out a faint chuckle in unison, of course, this only made Lucy awh even louder as she watched the boys. Logan and Carlos weren't dating, technically, just seeing how things would work out. But of course, none of their friends believed them. They all jumped straight to the fact that their boy had a boyfriend.
But for Logan, things were only about to get more complicated.
Carlos, Logan and Lucy soon made their way back to the other 3, introducing themselves properly before walking up the long, pebble scattered garden. Gently, Logan pounded on the large, oak door until he could hear shuffling on the other side.
Then, it swung open.
"Greetings everybody, and welcome to Chez Diamond!" James said enthusiastically, stepping back to allow the crowd to move in.
"God, this is a big house." Lucy said, ending the sentence with a whistle.
"Just right for me, aye?" James said with a wink, gaining a small blush from Lucy, who clearly got the hidden meaning.
Slowly, James brought them into the main room. It was large, with hardly any furniture. 2 couches sat propped against a wall, a table to the side adorned with a variety of posh finger food and alcohol. Within a shot, Sabrina dashed over to the table, swiping a bottle of vodka and glass, giving a loud cheer as she poured herself a drink.
The evening went by rather nicely, everybody mixing with each other. Whilst Drew and Sabrina seemed occupied on one of couches, Drew trying to keep Sabrina the slightest bit sober, Kendall, Carlos and Lucy were in their little group, chatting and laughing away. Every now and then, Carlos passed a sweet smile at Logan, causing the heat to tint his cheeks a pale pink. Throughout the evening, everyone had mingled with each other. Carlos and James spoke out parties and cars, the girls managed to have a gossip on the males in the room, whilst Kendall, Drew and Logan all just generally talked.
So all in all, everyone was getting along. But as the night went by, people were sat in their little groups. Making an excuse, Logan made his way over to the table to collect another drink, most likely anything but alcohol.
As the water collected in the bottom of his glass, he felt a tap on his shoulder, instantly spinning around. Then, Logan came into eye contact with James, a grin painted across his gorgeous face.
"Hey, err Logan, could we talk for a minute?" James asked.
"Yeah sure." Logan responded with a smile, following the taller boy out of the room, passing yet another cute smile at the Latino as he left.
Logan followed James through the house, into the kitchen area located at the back of the property. James propped himself up against the counter, Logan standing awkwardly in front of him.
"Your friends seem nice," James started. "Especially that Kendall, he seems a decent bloke."
"Yeah, they're rather cool people." Logan said with a smile.
James nodded, a small smile peering across his face, his eyes fixed on Logan. At first, Logan shifted from foot to foot as it was clear James wasn't moving his sight. Then, Logan decided to break the awful silence that fell on them.
"So," Logan said, moving his eyes in every direction. "This is a good party, I mean, I've heard your parties are always so laid back and sere-"
Moving his eyes wasn't a good idea. Within seconds, his words were cut off by the pressing on his lips. When he made sense, he realised James had leaned forward and kissed him. Slightly aroused and slightly confused, Logan shunted James back against the chest, causing the model to hit the counter.
"Ow!" James complained. "What was that for?"
"For kissing me!" Logan seethed through his teeth. "You had no right!"
"You're gay though," James responded. "So why does it matter?"
Logan's eyes bulged at the mere words. James knew he was gay? "W-W-What?"
"Yeah," James said rather blunt. "Everyone at the company knows. It's not exactly hard to miss. Look, I'm sorry, okay?"
Logan didn't reply. His vision became blurry as tears began to fill it. Within that moment, his worse fear was coming true. Whilst Logan had willingly accepted his sexuality, he wasn't ready for other people to accept it. His stomach dropped, a whole new feeling of sick rising through. James had kissed him, Logan had kissed Carlos.. It was a long day for Logan, so naturally, he was still coming to terms with everything.
But worst of all, if what James said was true about everyone at the company knowing, then that must mean Johanna might know through the grapevine.
"Logan? Say something?" James pleaded.
Logan's mouth opened, a syllable possibly leaving, but it didn't. Instead, a single tear ran down his face as he quickly sprinted out of the kitchen, his hand clutching his mouth in shock. As he dashed by the room where everyone else was, Carlos caught a glimpse of a distraught. Without a second thought to the deep conversation he was having with Kendall and Lucy, he climbed to his feet and ran afer Logan.
"Logan!" Carlos called out, seeing Logan in the distance still running. "Logan!"
Slowly, recognising the voice, Logan slowed down.
"Logan! Are you okay?" Carlos asked, his voice cracked from the running.
Logan turned around, his eyes a puffy red, his cheeks stained with glistening tears. Quickly, Carlos scooped Logan into his arms like he did earlier, soothing the model as he cried into Carlos' clothes, his sobs muffled by the linen. Carlos wanted to ask what was wrong, but at the same time, he didn't want to pressure Logan, not so early on in their courting anyway.
"C'mon Logan, let's take you back to mine," Carlos said. "Yeah?"
Logan just nodded, allowing Carlos to wrap his arms around his smaller frame and pull him along the amber coated pavements.
When they reached the apartment, Logan had lightened up a little, not crying anymore. Carlos pushed the key in and opened the door, being a gentleman and allowing Logan to enter first. Straight away, Logan moved over to the bed, taking a seat on it as a deep sigh escaped his lips.
"Do you wanna talk about it?" Carlos asked, sitting next to him.
Logan shook his head. "No.. It's okay.."
Carlos nodded, knowing there was no point keep questioning it. Instead, Carlos got up and made them both a drink, passing the wet glass to Logan, who quickly drunk the entire content.
"Looks like you've learnt from the best." Carlos joked.
Logan let out a small chuckle. "Yeah, the best being you of course."
Carlos couldn't help but grin at the words, despite Logan's mood at the moment. Being called the best, by someone you have such a strong feeling for, is just out of this world. And for Carlos, that was no exception. Carlos made an effort in getting Logan to go back to normal, chatting about the good parts of the night and the plans for the future.
As they laid down on the bed, their heads next to each other on the pillows, Carlos explained all about the many interesting dates he was going to take Logan on. First, they would do a picnic down at the beach at midnight. Then, Carlos and Logan would have a date in the kitchen cooking food, only ending it in a food fight. At one point, Logan even chipped in, suggesting that the pair could escape away to the Rockies for a weekend, get a log cabin and spend the entire night by the fire.
The peace, the comforting, the future all made Logan drowsy. Slowly but surely, his eyelids closed on him, his head falling down gently and landing on Carlos' chest. Smiling, Carlos wrapped an arm over his shoulder, his own eyes shutting, the moonlight shining on the boys embracing.
Thought you could all have some cute Cargan-ish moment, seeing as the next chapter is gonna be fluff with a very dark atmosphere. Yes, next chapter will be the revealing of Mr. Nasty himself. Although, he doesn't make an appearance until the end.
James kissed Logan. Frankly, I don't know how I ended up doing that because that weren't the plan, but oh well, it can fit in there nicely. But bless James. He doesn't know he's got a whole bunch of Cargan fans gunning for him now haha.
Who got the hidden message in the convo between James and Lucy? If you did, you're a star.