Hey guys... I'm so so so sorry that it took me forever to write this. I've had an awful lot of exams in the last few weeks and I just didn't have the time and energy to continue writing. Again, I'm sorry :( I hope you still enjoy this chapter!

When Worlds Crumble

Ch. 8 – Real life

"His father is WHAT?", Carlos yelled furiously and jumped to his feet. "Are you fucking kidding me?"

"Shh!" Mrs Knight shushed the agitated boy and pulled him back down on his chair. "Not so loud. These guys over there are already looking."

The Latino couldn't care less about others people's opinions at this moment, but he sat back down again even if it was just to calm his second mother. His gaze was hard when he leaned forward and continued in a heated whisper. "You're telling me that this bastard is back in Minnesota? After all these years?" Carlos couldn't quite believe it. He knew that his friends wouldn't lie about something like that, but it just seemed too surreal to be true.

Kendall nodded in a defeated manner and pinched the bridge of his nose while James clenched his fists angrily in remembrance of what happened only 20 minutes ago. Oh how he longed to go back and strangle this man with his bare hands for hurting his brother further than he already did in the past.

After James' call Kendall had told the others to come to this fast food place so they all could deliberate on what to do next, but with the news of Mr Mitchell being back in town there was this creepy, dark foreboding creeping up on them all. What if Logan did something stupid because of this mess? He was already in a very bad fettle and getting kicked out of his old home by his own parents might just push him over the edge. The results could turn out so horrifying that none of them wanted to think this possibility through. But still they all couldn't shake the feeling that it would happen if they didn't find Logan fast enough. The pressure was bone-crushing.

"Why does this have to be so fucked up?", Katie murmured to herself, hiding her tired face in her palms. She didn't remember Logan's father as clearly as the others did because she had been very young back then, but she knew all the terrible things he had done to Logan and that was enough for her to hate this man. And now he was back. She didn't even want to imagine what her lost brother had to be feeling right now. The horrid pain he was in during their earlier encounter would be nothing compared to his current situation.

Katie lay her head down on the table, not caring how childish this gesture looked. Somehow she felt like this was all her fault. Maybe if she had tried hard enough to keep him in LA Logan would've stayed. Then they wouldn't be sitting here right now, pondering on how to find their brother. A single tear ran down her cheek. Katie could've prevented all of this but she failed. Big time. And this was just too much for her. She didn't know how to handle this kind of failure.

Mrs Knight looked down on her clasped hands, for once not really knowing what to do or say. This whole situation with Logan's parents had caught her completely off guard. She had always seen Joanna Mitchell as one of her best friends. They had met in a hospital room when they were both pregnant with their children and immediately had a friendly vibe towards each other which had turned into a full-blown sisterhood over the years. They used to kaffeeklatsch whenever their boys played with each other and had been to all of their school festivals and trips together.

But this? Choosing her abusive husband over her own son? This was something Mrs Knight couldn't - and wouldn't - ever forgive her friend.

Besides all the excruciating fear motherly worry nagged at Mrs Knight too, hammering her with questions. Where was Logan at this moment? What was he gonna do now that he obviously was on his own? Was he even in Minnesota anymore?

She couldn't answer any of it and not knowing where her fourth son was scared her to no end. But she stayed put for her children. They needed a strong person to rely on and she wasn't going to let them down. What were mothers for after all?

Mrs Knight brushed Katie's hair with her fingers, silently comforting her the best she could.

"We just have to continue searching him, sweety", she said softly. "Maybe he's still somewhere near."

"Yeah, I think so too", Kendall affirmed and nodded his head in thought. "He took all that stress upon himself just to get here, he wouldn't leave anytime soon now that he finally is where he wants to be."

"I'm not too sure about that, Kendall", James said sadly. "If I were him I wouldn't want to stay in the town where my worst nightmare lives."

"He has a point", Katie piped up, finally lifting her head from the kitchen table again. "But I think we should still search for him", she added hastily when she noticed how Kendall's face fell at her words. "He could still be here."

"I guess", James confirmed, sounding not too convinced.

"We should give it a try", Mrs Knight said firmly and stood up. "You" She pointed at the teens. "go and check the main streets while I'm finding us a place to stay. We'll obviously stay here longer than I thought." She ran a hand through her hair before she looked at her kids again, determination in her eyes. "You four stay together all the time, no walking around here alone when I'm not with you, are we clear?"

"Yeah", they all chanted in unison. Mrs Knight nodded once more before grabbing her purse and storming out to her car.

James slumped into his chair, chuckling quietly to himself. When he noticed everybody giving him incredulous looks he simply turned to his blonde friend and shot him a small smile.

"Well, I guess now I know where you got those leader genes from, K-dall."

~BTR~BTR~BTR~BTR~BTR~

Three streets away Logan walked along the pavement, dragging his heavy duffel-bag with him. He had just been at his aunt's house (she lived in Minnesota, too), but nobody had opened the door. He assumed that she went on vacation or something, aunt Bea had always been a traveller as long as he could remember. His old friend Daniel didn't pick up when Logan called him and the brunette didn't want to just stand in front of their door and be like "Hello, can I stay here for like... the rest of my life?" Hell no. He wasn't going to put pressure on anybody without even asking for permission first. Now he was on his way along the side of town where he remembered the most motels and stuff. But the further he went the bigger his worry grew. Everything was too expensive for the little money he had with him. And if he didn't find a place to stay real soon he'd have to camp out here on the streets for another day. But that was definitely out of question. His back was already sore and he didn't need a cold right now to top his condition off, thank you very much.

So he strolled down the streets, asking here and there for a room, but he just didn't seem to have luck. It felt kind of biblical. No really, as time went by he felt more and more like Maria and Joseph. Only he wasn't pregnant.

Eventually Logan was too tired to continue his search. He sat down on the wayside and hid his face in his hands, a hopeless feeling settling in his stomach. The minutes passed by excruciatingly slow, leaving him alone in his endless pondering. Where could he possibly go from here?

"Yo, kid!"

Logan's head shot up in surprise as he turned around towards the source of the call. The grumpy voice belonged to a middle-aged, bulky man who peeked out from a small store right behind where the brunette sat. Logan's eyes widened as did the man's.

"Logan?"

"Charlie?"

The elderly man's face broke into a wide grin. It looked slightly creepy due to the lack of his two front teeth.

"Hey youngster! How ya doing? I thought you were outta here to... LA or something?"

Logan smiled widely when Charlie called him his old nickname, but frowned a little when LA was mentioned.

"Well, you see..." He stopped himself and looked down.

"Naaah, you don't have to tell me if you don't wanna, buddy", Charlie shouted happily and opened the old wooden door to his store. "Come on in here! It's way to cold outside to talk about old times!"

Logan chuckled at his friend's enthusiasm as he stepped inside. His old boss was just the way he remembered him. Back when the four boys were teenagers, about thirteen years or so, he and Kendall had bust the front window of his little store with their football and worked here to pay for the bills. Charlie had been nice and funny and soon became one of Logan's best friends despite their age difference. So even when he and Kendall had all the money for the window together Logan still worked here in his free time. Like that he got to see Charlie more often and had a nice little add to his pocket money.

"So, Logie", Charlie sighed as he sunk into his chair which gave a pitiful noise of protest at his weight. "How come you're out in the streets alone and with a duffel bag?"

His blue eyes pierced Logan's with a firm but also soft stare. That gaze. The brunette still knew it very well. It was Charlie's don't-lie-to-me-I'll-see-through-it-anyways-cause-I-can-read-you-like-a-book gaze. Logan sighed heavily.

"Okay, long story short: I left my friends in LA cause they are douches, took the first plane to Minnesota I could, saw that my dad was back at my old home, got kicked out by my parents and couldn't find a place to stay yet," he said in one breath.

Charlie blinked slowly. Once. Twice. Logan swore he could practically see the wheels turning behind those concerned blue eyes as he comprehended the given information. Then Charlie shrugged.

"Well, you can stay here if you want." The old man smiled and stood up, his chair thanked him with another creak. "I'll go make us some pancakes." With that he waddled out into the adjoined kitchen, humming some cheery tune all along.

This time it was Logan's turn to blink dumbly. He expected a sheer flood of pity he didn't want and now this was the reaction? Logan could barely refrain from laughing out loud. This was something so... Charlie. Your life is screwed up? Oh, I'm sorry, here, have some tea and a pancake!

Logan chuckled. Pancakes were one of the biggest weaknesses of Charlie. He ate them all the time, whenever he possibly could, no matter in which situation. It was kind of weird at first, but Logan had gotten used to it. The brunette leaned back in his own chair and smiled. Now was the first time he realized just how much he had missed Charlie. They used to talk a lot when he worked here, it was a great way to blow off some steam or deal with most of his personal problems. Charlie knew almost as much about Logan as Kendall, Carlos and James did which was why he was so comfortable around the old man. Here he didn't have to pretend to be somebody he wasn't like he had to with his parents.

"What did you do the last few years, Charlie?", Logan called out into the kitchen to distract himself from the sadness he felt when he thought about his father and mother. He got an immediate response.

"Aaah, a little of this, a little of that... Moved my store into this part of town, got new customers and a new toothbrush... The usual." Logan chuckled as Charlie returned into the room, carrying a steaming pile of banana pancakes and two cups of tea on a plate.

"Here you go, youngster", Charlie grinned as he handed Logan his food.

"Thanks", the brunette beamed gratefully and dug in, noticing how hungry he was now that he saw the food. He hadn't had any since the flight.

After a few minutes of eating in comfortable silence Charlie clasped his hand together, something he always did when he wanted to say something important. Logan perked up his ears immediately.

"Sooo... I assume you want to stay here, right?" Charlie didn't even wait for a response before he continued. "I'd say you take the couch you always read on in the afternoons. I still have it. It's in the guest room right there" He pointed to another door. "and you can reach the store from it, too. I just got one question for you before you settle in." Charlie moved closer so he could look his smaller friend directly in the eyes. His gaze was dead serious. "Where will you go from here, Logan?"

Ouch. Leave it to Charlie to pick the one question Logan couldn't answer. The brunette lowered his head.

"I don't know", he replied in a small voice.

Charlie nodded as if he expected that answer and leaned back into his chair, laying his hands on his belly. "Once you know it... you'll tell me, alright?", he asked kindly. He knew how hard this was for Logan and the brunette appreciated that he didn't pressure him into answering right ahead.

"Alright", Logan said quietly. Then he looked up. "Charlie?" The elder man raised his eyebrows and hummed in acknowledgement. Logan took a deep breath and sighed sadly. "I think..." He swallowed around the lump forming in his throat. "I think I have to get out of Minnesota."

Charlie looked at him silently for a long time before nodding. "I know."

BOOM! This was chapter 8 for y'all :) Tell me what you think please! Oh and btw do you like Charlie? I didn't actually plan his character or anything, he just kind of popped up in my head while I wrote it :) Also, what do you think Logan's gonna do now? And what about Kendall, Carlos and James? I hope I won't take that long for the next chapter, but I'm afraid I can't promise anything... See you next time! - Ani