Title: And So It Goes
Author: SLynn
Rating: T
Pairings: Logan/Camille and Kendall/Jo
Spoilers: None
Disclaimer: Does anyone actually read this? If so, these characters and settings are not mine. I'm only borrowing.

Summary: Katie has a plan, but it's Kelly that ends up needing one.

Notes: Thanks for the reviews, guys! I'm trying to post a chapter a day, and right now it looks like this will end up being in the 15-20 chapter range. Enjoy!

Chapter 3

Kelly looked at her watch for the fifth time in under ten minutes. It had been an extremely long day, but she had to admit, it would have seemed longer if Carlos hadn't been there. Despite the boredom that had slunk into her office over the past hour, the larger part of the day she'd either kept busy or had been kept busy laughing.

"You've got to see this," Carlos chuckled from his recently acquired spot behind her desk.

"I don't want to see another video of some guy falling off his skateboard," Kelly said, draping an arm across her eyes as she leaned back just far enough to prop up her feet.

"It's not," Carlos swore. "This one's on a trampoline."

Kelly almost smiled, but had a better idea instead.

"Let's get out of here," she said, dropping so quickly in her chair that it caused Carlos to jump in his.

"Quitting time?" he asked, getting to his feet and rubbing a hand over his eyes.

"No," Kelly sighed. "From the sounds of it, they'll keep us here at least another hour. We'll make a coffee run. A long coffee run."

Carlos smiled and followed her out of the office, past the recording bays where she stopped long enough to shout out where they were heading.

"Should we ask if they want something?"

"I know Gustavo's order backwards and forwards," Kelly assured him. "And, as for James, well, after what happened the last time we let any of you have drinks in the booth..."

She trailed off, no need to elaborate further.

It was just past ten as they walked briskly into the refreshing night air to the nearest Starbucks. The first one they reached had just closed, but that didn't deter Kelly.

"The one on the next corner stays open till midnight," she told him.

Kelly picked up her pace. The air, that had started off refreshing, had grown steadily cooler, until it got to the point where she'd begun to wrap her arms around herself in an effort to keep warm.

She was just thinking, with regret, of the sweater she purposefully left in her office for trips just like this, when she felt Carlos drop his sweatshirt across her shoulders.

"Thanks, Carlos, but won't you be cold now?"

"Are you kidding?" he asked. "I'm from Minnesota. This is nothing."

She laughed, slipping her arms into the sleeves and zipping it up high.

They walked in silence until reaching their destination.

"Hey, Kelly," the barista behind the counter called out as soon as they were inside. "Good to see you."

"Hi, Jeff," Kelly returned, smiling at him.

"You want your usual?"

"Please," she said. "And one for the boss, too, but not just yet. We're going to drink ours here and take his to go, okay?"

"No problem at all," Jeff answered, before turning to Carlos and reaching over to shake his hand. "You must be one of Kelly's guys, am I right?"

"Guys?" Carlos said skeptically, shaking the offered hand.

"Jeff, this is Carlos," Kelly said, patting him on the back. "You'd better ask for his autograph now before he gets too famous and starts charging for them."'

"I doubt that," Carlos replied.

"You're joking," Jeff said. "The way Kelly goes on about you and that group your in... this lady here, she doesn't make things up."

"Yeah, but.."

"If she says you've got talent, you've got it."

Jeff laughed and then asked Carlos what he'd have to drink. Carlos placed his order, shifting uncomfortably as they waited, and then hurried off with Kelly to the table at the window.

"You really said all that stuff about us?" Carlos asked her once he'd taken his first sip of coffee.

"Of course I did."

Carlos watched for a moment as Kelly checked her phone for any missed messages.

"Because it's your job, right?"

"It is," Kelly shrugged, "but that doesn't mean it isn't true."

"Maybe it is for Kendall or James, but I'm just along for the ride."

"What?" Kelly asked, shocked even.

"Don't get me wrong," Carlos said quickly, afraid she had done just that, "I love it. I do. I didn't think I would, but it's a lot of fun when Gustavo isn't yelling. Sometimes it's more fun when he is yelling. The singing, the dancing. All of it. And I take it serious. I just meant that I know I'm not the one with any real talent."

"You can't possibly believe that?" Kelly asked, still sounding shocked. "Carlos, really?"

"Well, yeah..."

"Carlos," Kelly sighed, looking into her cup as if it might offer her advice on the subject. "That's... that's not true. You're just as good as Kendall and James. Just as important as they are to this group."

"But Gustavo said -"

"Gustavo says a lot of things," she interrupted. "You've got to stop listening to what he says and see what he does."

"So, something like this?" Carlos asked, throwing his hands in the air, mouth open wide in a perfect impression of Gustavo, in a rage, sans sound.

"No," Kelly laughed. "No, that's not what I meant. I meant, he may have gone looking for someone like James, and picked someone like Kendall, but he took all of you. All of you. You and Logan, too."

"Because Kendall wouldn't do it without us."

"No," Kelly argued.

Carlos looked at her with clear skepticism.

"Okay, yes," she admitted, "but, he kept you. He kept all of you, and he'd have never done that if you weren't good."

Carlos still did not look persuaded.

"Individually, you're all good. Very good, even," Kelly continued. "But together, you guys are amazing."

"That's still the job talking, isn't it?"

"It's really not. You've got talent. Accept it."

Carlos considered it for a moment, taking a slow sip so as not to have to speak right away, giving the blush that had crept across his cheeks the chance to burn out.

Finally, still looking down at the table, he said, "Thanks, Kelly."

"Any time," she said, briefly placing her hand on his forearm and giving it a gentle squeeze. "Now, lets get back to the studio. If we're lucky, Gustavo is done yelling at James and we can all go home and enjoy a day off tomorrow."

They were in luck, arriving back just in time to see Gustavo and James ready to pack up for the night.

"Kelly, give these dogs a ride home, will you?" Gustavo asked her as soon as he'd drank half his coffee. "I don't trust them on the buses this late. They might get lost."

"Sure thing," Kelly said. "Let me get my purse."

A few minutes after that Kelly led Carlos and James into the parking lot and towards her car, the only one left at this time of night.

"This is your car?" James said, sounding disappointed.

Carlos slapped him across the chest and muttered 'shut up' under his breath.

"I'm just saying, Gustavo drives a Porsche."

"Yes, well, Gustavo also has a mansion," Kelly returned, "and I have a one-bedroom condo that's about three square feet bigger than my office."

"Shotgun," Carlos said quickly, while James was still distracted by the ordinariness of Kelly's sedan.

"What? No," James exclaimed. "I'm older."

"And slower," Carlos shot back at him. "I called it first."

James grumbled as he got in, but Carlos found it was worth it when Kelly cast him another smile over the hood of the car. One he read easily and returned.

"Ugh," James said, rubbing the palms of his hands over his eyes. "I never want to hear that song again."

"What took so long?" Kelly asked.

"Gustavo didn't like the way I was singing one of the lines. Something about emphasis. I guess we got there in the end, but who knows. He may listen to it tonight and call me in again tomorrow. And if he does, I'm not going."

"I'm sure it's fine," Kelly tried.

"Is it really eleven thirty?" James asked, ignoring her last statement. He was simultaneously exhausted and bursting with energy, the natural result of a long day spent standing still.

"Yep," Kelly answered. "But don't worry. I'll get you home before curfew. Or should I call? I should call."

"Don't," Carlos advised. "You'll just wake up Mrs. Knight, and she works again tomorrow. Kendall will have let her know where we were."

Kelly nodded in agreement, putting her phone back down almost as quickly as she'd picked it up.

Not ten minutes later, they pulled up at the Palm Woods, just in time.

"Thanks for the ride, Kelly," James called, not bothering to wait; bolting out the door to enjoy the last few minutes of the night and heading straight for the patio by the pool.

Kelly didn't answer, just shook her head at his departure.

"Yeah," Carlos echoed, still lingering behind. "Thanks."

"Any time, Carlos," she said.

"Well, um... goodnight," he said, shutting the door before turning.

"Oh, wait," Kelly called. "Carlos!"

"Yeah?" he asked, hurrying back a few steps and bending low to look in the window.

"Your sweatshirt," she said, undoing her seatbelt to unzip it in a hurry. "I forgot."

"No," he said, shaking his head at her, "don't worry about it. You can keep it."

"I can't do that," she said, shaking her head in return.

"No, really," he insisted, backing away as if he wouldn't allow it. "It's no big deal. Just... keep it."

"Okay," she said, relenting more because the zipper had become snagged. "If you're sure. Thanks again."

Carlos waved as he backed up another few steps, finally turning to go when he saw her refasten her seatbelt, not knowing that she waited until he was inside before really leaving, as she always did when she dropped any of the guys off. It was another part of her job, seeing to their safety, but one she didn't really mind.

Kelly liked looking after them. They were good kids.