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.

Chapter 11

"Eat dust!"

"That's big talk from someone who hasn't won a single race."

Katie laughed and then reached over and tipped Logan's controller in the opposite direction in which he was currently turning it.

"And now you're cheating," he added, but with a laugh.

They'd spent the better part of the afternoon wasting time on video games. Logan knew he should probably be going over the lyrics Kelly had sent home with him, but seeing as he couldn't get anyone to talk to him, he assumed singing with him was also out of the question. Besides, he was having fun for the first time all week, and, of course, he'd finished his homework first. It was a nice distraction from his problems.

"It's not cheating," Katie said defensively. "It's an aggressive driving tactic."

"I am never getting in a car with you behind the wheel."

Katie's laugh died in her throat as the front door flew open and Carlos stormed through the living room and into his bedroom without a single glance in their direction.

Logan paused the game and got to his feet.

"Where are you going?" she asked.

"I'll be right back," he assured her, putting down the controller as he went after Carlos.

"But, what about our game?"

"Save it," Logan told her just before he went into the bedroom. "We'll finish later."

Katie slunk back down into the couch, waited a minute, and then just turned the console off entirely as she caught sight of something out of the window.

"Hey," Logan said as he shut the door.

Carlos was already up in his bed, lying on his back with the palms of his hands pressed tightly against his eyes.

"Is everything..."

"Just shut up," Carlos barked at him.

Logan hesitated, unsure what his next move should be. Even at his angriest, Carlos didn't yell. Logan felt like he really should turn around and leave, but ultimately he found he could not do it when Carlos was obviously upset. So, without saying any more, and as quietly as he could, Logan climbed up onto his own bed and sat with his legs off over the side and waited. Carlos let out several raspy, deep breaths followed by a very audible sniff, as Logan watched his shoes with increasing fascination for the next several minutes.

"I'm so stupid," Carlos finally said after what felt like an eternity, his voice still shaky with emotion.

After another deep breath, Carlos sat up and faced Logan from across the room, his eyes still very red, but overall, much calmer than before.

"You'll get a kick out of this," Carlos said with a humorless laugh. "I did it. I told Kelly how I feel about her."

"Carlos, I..."

"No, it gets better," Carlos said, smiling now in a rather uneven way that didn't quite reach his eyes. "It does. See, I thought when I was telling her all this stuff that she understood me. Not only understood me and what I was saying, but that she was good with it. I thought maybe... maybe... and then I kissed her."

Carlos clapped his hands together with a tight smile on his face, before putting his head back in his hands again.

Without thinking about the very real possibility that Carlos might knock him out if he got too close, and with good reason, Logan jumped down from his own bunk and quickly climbed up next to Carlos. He threw an arm around his friend and waited.

"So stupid," Carlos muttered after several long minutes. "What the hell was I thinking?"

"I don't know."

Logan patted Carlos hard on the back a few times as he straightened up and attempted to appear more like himself again.

"What did Kelly say?" Logan asked once he was sure Carlos would be okay to talk.

"She said some nice things," Carlos admitted, "but she made it really clear that I'd definitely crossed a line. That I'd freaked her out. And, you know, she didn't... she couldn't..."

"Yeah," Logan said, he'd figured that part out.

"I don't know what's worse," he went on. "The fact that she called me a kid, which just makes me feel so... small. Or the fact that, despite how awful... how awful that whole thing was, I still want it to work out. I know it can't," Carlos said quickly. "I get it, I do, but I still want it to happen. I can't help it. If I could turn it off, I would. I would in a heartbeat, just so I don't have to feel..."

"I know what you mean," Logan muttered.

Carlos turned his head, kind of surprised.

"I know exactly how you feel," Logan said, this time in a stronger voice. "That notebook? I was writing to Camille. After you gave me her letter, I got it into my head that I could convince her to just wait. Give it a few days, weeks, whatever... just wait for a little while. That we didn't have to break up and that I still wanted to see her. Only her."

Logan took a deep breath, hoping confession really was good for the soul.

"If I'd have had the chance to talk to her in person, I would have begged. I would have told her that I loved her and that I'd do anything... I did tell her that..."

"In the letter?"

Logan nodded.

"What..."

"She said no."

Carlos continued to stare at him as Logan took another steadying breath.

"She said no. That she didn't want to wait. She didn't want to wait for me at least. And now it's all so completely embarrassing, but at the same time, I wish she'd just take me back. I don't want to feel this way, but I do."

Carlos put an arm around Logan and pulled him sideways into a tight hug.

"We're kind of pathetic, aren't we?"

"Yeah," Logan laughed. "We kind of are."

Carlos jumped down from the top bunk and walked around the room in an effort to regain some composure.

"Carlos," Logan began, still red faced and ashamed, "I am really sorry for saying what I did. That was an awful thing to do and..."

"Forget it," Carlos said and he meant it. "It's over and you more than made up for it just now."

"I still..."

"I said forget it," Carlos cut in.

"All right," Logan said, willing to drop it if Carlos was, as he climbed down.

Logan and Carlos stood there awkwardly for a few moments, both casting about for something to ease the tension still in the room.

"Want to play some video games?" Logan finally asked.

"Sure," Carlos answered, glad to have something to do besides think.

"Hey, Katie!" Logan yelled out upon finding the living room empty. "Carlos is going to play, too. We can take turns."

"Where is everyone?" Carlos asked as he jumped over the back of the couch and picked up Katie's old controller.

"Mrs. Knight is working a late shift," James answered, keeping an eye on Katie's door. "I don't know where James and Kendall went. They're not exactly talking to me."

"Sorry about that."

"Completely my fault," Logan said as he sat down and then hopped back up again. "Where'd she go?"

"Who, Katie?"

"Yeah, I'm kind of watching her."

"Maybe she just went down to the patio," Carlos suggested.

Logan still looked worried.

"She can take care of herself."

"I really should see where she is," Logan said, still uneasy. Ever since he'd gotten into so much trouble himself, Logan had switched into what the other guys called his 'uber-responsible' mode, which made his a lot less fun and a lot more nervous.

"All right," Carlos said, standing up with him. "Let's go take a look."

"Thanks."

Before leaving they made absolute sure that Katie wasn't still in the apartment. After that they went first to the lobby, still no luck, and then tried the patio by the pool.

"If she's not here..." Logan began.

"Then she's probably at the park," Carlos finished before Logan could get himself wound too tightly.

"This is perfect," Logan grumbled as they weaved their way in and out of the cabanas. "Now I can finish my week as a complete disappointment to everyone. What am I going to say, 'Sorry Mrs. Knight, I lost your daughter.'"

"Like I said, she's probably -"

"Probably what?" Logan said, still looking around in the hopes that Katie would just pop up from behind the planters.

"Um," Carlos said, turning abruptly and attempting to drag Logan away, "let's try the park."

"We're not done here."

"Yes, we are," Carlos said, pushing him in the opposite direction as best he could.

Then, as Logan stopped fighting him and his whole body just kind of went slack, Carlos let go, and knew it was too late.

"Who's that with Camille?"

Carlos dropped his hands to his side in defeat, "I don't know."

"They seem awfully..."

Logan couldn't finish the sentence, it was too terrible to consider. But there it was, right in front of him and too obvious to ignore. Camille and some guy, laughing and sitting close together in that little out-of-way part of the patio frequented by young couples.

Logan stood there, transfixed, as this guy who he'd never seen before, leaned in close to Camille and whispered something in her ear. Camille threw back her head with a laugh and then happened to spot Logan. She gave him a look that was almost a dare, like she'd wanted him to see this, and then Camille was moving closer to this guy and Logan couldn't watch any longer.

"Maybe it's for some play," Carlos said hopefully, following Logan back into the lobby.

"I doubt that," Logan muttered.

"Forget it for now," Carlos said. "We're looking for Katie, remember?"

"Yeah," Logan agreed, momentarily distracted as his friend had hoped he'd be. "Let's try the park."

Just as they reached the door that exited on the side of the building, Katie came through it.

"Hey."

"Where have you been?" Logan asked, reaching new levels of anxious, that Carlos thought had nothing to do with Katie.

"I took a walk around the building," Katie answered, as if it should be obvious. "I thought you two wanted to be alone for your 'male bonding' time."

Carlos looked mildly offended, but before he could speak up, Logan was already talking again.

"You should have told someone or written a note. You just can't leave. What if something bad had happened to you?"

"I was just outside," Katie repeated.

"Dude," Carlos whispered. "You're drawing a crowd."

Logan did a quick circle and saw that was kind of true, but he didn't care if people were staring.

"You can't do that, Katie," he continued. "You just can't."

"What's his problem?" she asked Carlos.

"Camille," he answered truthfully.

"My problem," Logan insisted, "is that I told your mom I'd watch you and that's really hard to do if you just take off."

"Okay, I'm sorry," Katie said, her hands up as if in surrender.

"Let's just go back upstairs," Carlos suggested, hoping to at least minimize the number of people about to witness Logan's impending freak-out.

"Come on," Katie said, taking Logan by the hand and pulling him towards the elevator.

Logan seemed resigned, and then without warning dropped Katie's hand and began heading towards the patio again.

"Whoa," Carlos called, jumping out in front of him and shaking him by the shoulders. "Where do you think you're going?"

"I'm just going to talk to her."

"That is not a good idea," Carlos said, speaking from some recently acquired experience. "You're not thinking clear and you know you'll just end up saying something you'll regret."

"But..." Logan stammered.

"She's got a new boyfriend," Katie added. "Let her go."

Carlos frowned at Katie, clearly confused how she could know that.

"I've got eyes," Katie said, as if she'd read his mind.

"He might not be her boyfriend," Logan said, his voice full of doubt. "Just some guy she's sitting with, flirting with..."

"Don't forget kissing," Katie added.

"They were kissing?"

"So what?" Katie said, feeling her stomach burn with guilt at the look on Logan's face, but it was too late now. "You don't need her."

"She's right," Carlos said, lowering his voice and turning Logan back towards the elevator. "You don't need her."