Chapter 19 Home at last…
The Palm Woods building used to be full of life. Kids and teens used to run around, laughing and lounging by the famous pool. But walking inside now, people would never believe it.
Behind the desk in the lobby stands the hotel manager, Mr. Bitters. He looks incredibly bored as he puts on another fake welcome smile and hands a key to a new resident. The smile fades immediately and he rolls his eyes as he watches the teens sitting in the lobby. It's so quiet inside the building. It's like something is missing. Everyone can feel it. And it's been like that for over a year now.
The more familiar faces around the fire pit don't just look bored. They look dejected, sad. They sit together every day, even though they aren't all friends. At least, they weren't before. But now they all share something; they all miss the four hockey heads from Minnesota who became a music band.
It was hard when they went missing for that whole year. Everyone started to believe they were gone. They were ecstatic when they were found, alive. But things felt even worse when their parents took them home, to Minnesota. It feels horrible to know they're alive, but so far away.
Jo and Camille especially tried to get in touch with them. They tried to visit them in the hospital. But their parents wouldn't allow them. Said they needed to rest. And now still, no one can reach them.
So every day, they sit around the fire pit, singing the songs their friends used to sing. Jo, Camille, Guitar Dude, the Jennifers, Lightning and even Jett share stories about the four friends. Sometimes others join them, but as much fun as it is bringing back those memories, Palm Woods is not the same.
Mr. Bitters flips through a magazine on his desk. The only sound in the entire lobby is the pages being moved. He rolls his eyes in an annoyed fashion when he hears the front door opening. New residents. Great. He gets ready to put on his fake smile again and looks up.
"Hello and welcome to…" He trails off and his mouth falls open in shock as he eyes the six familiar faces in front of him.
Jennifer Knight smiles at him, while Katie actually goes up to hug him.
"Bitters!" She yells out and he awkwardly pats her back as he tries to get her to let go.
"Wow… I uh…" He stumbles as things get very awkward fast.
He eyes the others, but is shocked to say the least. Kendall looks at the floor, avoiding everyone and looking very scared. Logan stares ahead with sad eyes and looks over to his friends every one in a while. Carlos also stares ahead, but his face is stone cold. And James… James' face can't even be seen. He is wearing sunglasses and a hat and the rest of his face is covered with a scarf.
"Well, uh… welcome back to the Palm Woods." He stammers as he hopes they haven't noticed him staring. He hurries back behind his desk as Mrs. Knight and Katie approach him. He puts on a nervous smile, but at least this time it's real.
"It's great to see you again." Jennifer Knight tells the manager. He only nods. "Uh, can we have our old apartment back?"
Katie looks at him with hopeful eyes.
"I uh… sure. I uh, made sure it stayed available once they were found." He nervously admits as he searches for the key.
Meanwhile, other residents have stopped to stare at the guys. They all try to avoid everyone's gazes as they stand in the middle of the lobby. Whispering is going around and Katie turns around angrily.
"Hey, what are you all looking at? They're still the same, you know." She growls, while her mother tries to shush her. The staring teens quickly advert their eyes when even Bitters shoots them a glare.
"Well, here's the key. How about I help you with those bags?" He offers suddenly. Jennifer Knight and her daughter exchange surprised looks.
"Um, sure. Thank you." Jennifer tells the man as he hurries over and grabs two bags. He walks towards the elevators and the small group follows him. It doesn't escape the teens' eyes the way Kendall immediately grips his mother's arm for safety when they start to walk. Or the way James lingers in the back, trying to go unnoticed.
They wait for the elevators to come down, when suddenly a group of teens busts through the lobby doors.
"Is it true, are they really here?" A female voice loudly shouts out excitedly. Just then a loud squeal is heard. "Logan!"
Logan turns around with wide eyes and just manages to step aside, before Camille can launch into his arms. He winces as she hits the floor, but that's really not the kind of attention he wants right now.
"Oh my god." Another female voice sounds. "Kendall?" She nearly whispers. Jo tries to walk over, but the boy in question buries himself in his mother's back. The group of teens watching them can't help but gasp. This couldn't be Kendall. Kendall wasn't scared of anything. "Kendall? It's me, Jo." The blonde girl tells him, but he almost whimpers when she reaches out a hand to touch him.
She pulls back immediately and her hand flies in front of her mouth. She can feel her eyes tear up at the sight of her once boyfriend looking so scared, like a little boy. She shakes her head and runs out of the lobby as fast as she can.
Camille has gotten up from the floor and has watched the exchange nervously. She watches all four of the boys and frowns.
"Wow… It's been so long. I hardly recognize you guys…" She tells them with a small smile. But they can hear how much her voice trembles.
Even the Jennifers are speechless. Which is something that doesn't happen. They look like they want to say something, but as they witness James trying to hide The Face, they know what happened to the guys is something far worse than they thought.
Everything becomes even worse the moment Lightning runs into the lobby. He is barking and wagging his tail as he runs towards Carlos. Everyone smiles, but as soon as Carlos turns towards the happy dog, the situation changes dramatically. Lightning stops running and instead of barking, he starts to whimper. His tail falls down between his legs and he backs up and behind Guitar Dude's legs for comfort.
The teens try not to gasp at the emptiness and darkness surrounding the boy in front of them. It is like the air is sucked away from them, until a sudden ding alerts them to the arrival of the elevator.
The group hurries inside and when the doors close, the teens stand watching in shocked silence. They breathe a sigh of relief and exchange glances.
"What just happened?" Camille spills at once, while still watching the elevator doors.
"I don't know. But those can't be the same guys…" Blond Jennifer speaks out and everyone else just nods.
"They're going to need a lot of help." Guitar Dude murmurs. They nod again and soon retreat to the fire pit to talk.
Upstairs, Bitters leads the small group towards a familiar door; 2J stands out and Katie smiles widely. She's practically bouncing on her feet as she waits impatiently for Bitters to open the door for them.
The moment the door is open, Katie flies inside and shrieks of happiness follow quickly. Mrs. Knight laughs and shakes her head in amusement. Bitters heads inside as well and sets the bags down in the living area. Jennifer Knight looks around and is nearly brought to tears when she takes in the surroundings that look like they never left in the first place.
James looks around quickly to see if anyone has noticed him. When he sees no one, he hurries inside the apartment, throws down his bags and runs into his old bedroom, slamming the door behind him. Logan cringes at the sound and stares after his old friend in concern.
A hand suddenly appears on his shoulder and squeezes affectionately.
"Don't worry. He just needs some time to adjust." Mrs. Knight tells him. Logan smiles at her and nods. But the moment she smiles and lets him go, his own smile falls away. Don't worry? How could he not?
"Mom?" A small voice from the doorway asks uncertainly. Jennifer Knight turns around and she puts on a fake smile of her own. She walks towards her son, who is still standing in the hallway, looking at their surroundings with a hint of fear. He is clutching Carlos' arm tightly, as if looking for protection from the older boy, while he just stares into nothingness.
"It's okay, sweetie. You're home now, remember?" Jennifer tells him, her heart nearly breaking at his big green eyes that so much resemble a child's. She walks closer and gently grabs his hand and leads him inside. He slowly follows her, still clutching Carlos' left side. "Come on, I'll take you to your room."
Together they shuffle towards the bedroom Kendall shared with Logan before. Kendall looks around with wide eyes, like he's there for the first time. As they walk into the room, they find Logan already unpacking his bags. He turns around when he hears them enter and things get awkward again.
Jennifer tries to pull Kendall inside, but he pulls back. He keeps his eyes on Logan, who seems a little confused. But soon he realizes Kendall is again afraid of him.
"Kendall, come on, sweetie. This is your room." Kendall mumbles something. "What?" Kendall pulls her closer and mumbles something in her ear. She pulls back and looks confused. "But, honey, he's your friend. You've shared a room together since we came here. You're best friends." Logan gasps slightly when he realizes what Kendall said. Kendall whimpers and tries to plead with his mother.
She shoots Logan a look of sympathy, seeing his look of hurt appearing.
"Logan, Kendall um…" Logan turns around.
"It's okay, Mrs. Knight. I know what he said. I'll just pack my stuff and move in with James. If he'll let me in the room that is." He puts on a fake smile to cover his hurt and puts his clothes back into his bags.
"Logan…" Jennifer starts as she walks towards him.
"It's fine, Mrs. Knight. Really." He says with a small smile and quickly grabs his bags and heads for the door. A he does, Kendall quickly hides behind Carlos. Logan swears he saw Carlos roll his eyes when Kendall hid behind him. But quickly shakes his head. Why would Carlos roll his eyes? He doesn't care about anything anymore.
He looks back for a moment, his eyes lingering on his Latino friend. Carlos didn't care or notice what was going on anymore. Did he?
He shakes his head and heads for the other bedroom. He sighs as he finds it still closed. He jiggles the door handle and finds it locked. He scowls and knocks.
"James? Open the door, it's Logan, your new roomie." He says, fake excitement dripping from his voice.
He waits for a moment, when suddenly the door swings open. James has put his disguise back on and looks behind Logan quickly.
"Did anyone see you?" he asks in a whisper. Logan rolls his eyes.
"For god's sake, James. We're the only ones here." He pushes James aside and pulls his bags with him. He puts them on Carlos' old bed and angrily unpacks.
"Um, Logan?" James suddenly asks.
"What!" Logan yells as he angrily turns around to face him. James shrinks away from him and Logan realizes what he's doing. "I… I'm sorry, James. I'm just frustrated."
"Why are you sleeping in here now?" James asks quietly.
"Because Kendall is scared of me and somehow only trusts Carlos. He told his mom he didn't want to share the room with him." Logan tells him, still mad as he practically throws his clothes onto the bed.
"Why is Kendall scared of you?" James asks in return as he starts to take off his disguise.
"I…" Logan sighs. "I'm not sure. He won't let me near him close enough to ask." Logan puts his empty bag on the floor and turns around. He nearly gasps as he sees James' chest for a moment as he changes his shirt. He tries not to stare, but can't help it when instead of seeing washboard abs, he sees all of his ribs clearly. He stares as James quickly pulls it down, oblivious to Logan seeing him.
"What?" he asks, confused as to why Logan is staring.
"I uh… James… Your chest… You lost a lot of weight…" Logan quietly tells him.
James gulps. "We all lost weight, Logan. On the count of not getting fed enough while being held captive for a year."
"No, James. We've already gained some weight. You're thinner than the day they found us…" He nearly whispers in return.
James quickly averts his gaze away from Logan and practically jumps into bed, drawing the covers over himself. Logan heads for him and sits on his bed. He tries to take away the sheets.
"James…" He starts.
"I'm fine, Logan. I just haven't had much of an appetite lately." James replies as he tries to move away from his friend.
"How long is lately?" Logan asks him, his eyes full of concern.
"Logan, I'm fine, alright. Please, I'm tired, I want to go to sleep." James announces, his voice telling him the discussion is over.
"Okay, fine. But I am watching you, James." James just sighs in annoyance and grabs the covers and pulls them over his head, turning his face towards the wall.
Logan gets up and sits on his own bed. His new bed. He looks around once more. This is what it will be like from now on. He'll be rooming with James, who seems to be hiding more than his face. Kendall is scared of him, so scared even that he doesn't want to be in the same room as him. And Carlos is in some far away place, but maybe not as far away as everyone thinks.
Logan lets himself fall onto the bed and stares at the ceiling. What will become of them? He needs to do something, being the only one still normal. Maybe he should try to start with Carlos. He doesn't know why, but there is just something telling him he is aware of everything around him. Carlos had always had a way to cheer people up, bring them out of their shells. So if he could get to the real Carlos, maybe they could all be fixed. He has to try…
A/N So sorry guys! I really have been wanting to write, but I have been really busy with school. I'm in my last year and doing three projects at once. They all have to be handed in before the 9th of January, so I've been trying to focus on that. If I pass all of them at the same time, I can start my graduation process.
But anyway, hope you like the new chapter. Btw, if you have any thoughts, suggestions, comments, let me know I love writing for this story, so I would love some extra inspiration
I'll try to update again really soon, but if I don't, I apologize in advance, since I am still really busy with school.
Review if you want, but I hope everyone enjoys reading my stories, even if you don't feel like reviewing
Thanks for all your support and until next time!
Love, Baxxie